Giannis Antetokounmpo gets into post-game altercation with Pacers / News - Basketnews.com

Antetokounmpo wanted the game ball after scoring a Bucks franchise-record 64 points against the Pacers. The Pacers initially took the ball to commemorate rookie Oscar Tshiebwe's first NBA point. Giannis was ultimately able to receive the ball.

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Giannis Antetokounmpo played the highest-scoring game in his NBA career against the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night. After the game, the Greek superstar got involved in a conflict about it.

Player of the Game EFF 65 Giannis Antetokounmpo Points 64 Accuracy 20-28 Rebounds 14 Assists 3

Namely, Antetokounmpo scored Milwaukee Bucks franchise-record 64 points, besting his career-high mark by 9 points. He wanted to have the game ball after the final whistle, but the Pacers did not give it to him, Chris B. Haynes from Bleacher Reports notes.

The Pacers took the ball to give it to their rookie center, Oscar Tshiebwe, who scored his first points in the NBA that evening. Antetokounmpo didn't like that the ball was not given to him and stormed to the Pacers locker room post-game, getting himself into an altercation with the local staff.

"What happened after the game was unfortunate. There was a misunderstanding about the game ball. It was Oscar Tshiebwe's first official NBA point, so we always get the game ball. We were not thinking of Giannis' franchise record," Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said.

"We grabbed the ball, and a couple of minutes later, several of their players ended up in our hallway. There was a big fracas, melee. I don't think any punches were landed, but our general manager got elbowed into the ribs by one of their players," Carlisle revealed. "He certainly has a bruised rib, and who knows if it's anything more than that. Unfortunate situation. We don't need the official game ball. There are two game balls, we could've taken the other one. It didn't need to escalate to that."

Ultimately, Antetokounmpo was able to get the game ball, as the Bucks security managed to retrieve it, Haynes reports. However, he said he wasn't convinced it was the ball the two teams played with Wednesday night.

"I have a ball, but I don't know if it's the game ball. It doesn't feel like the game ball to me," Giannis said during the post-game press conference.

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