Bucks avoid elimination again, beat Bulls 94-88 in Game 5

CHICAGO (AP) — Michael Carter-Williams had 22 points and eight assists, Khris Middleton scored 21 points, and the Milwaukee Bucks avoided elimination again with a 94-88 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Monday night in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series.

With a 3-2 lead, the Bulls will try to close it out again Thursday at Milwaukee. But the Bucks aren’t going quietly after dropping the first three games.

They took Game 4 on a last-second layup by Jerryd Bayless and withstood several pushes by the Bulls in the fourth quarter of this one.

The Bucks regrouped after a nine-point lead dwindled to three, and they hung on again after a seven-point lead shrunk to four with just over a minute remaining.

Carter-Williams hit 10 of 15 shots while outplaying Derrick Rose. The Bucks’ guard rolled his right ankle early in the third but came back late in the quarter.