OUSMANE Dieng was a thorn on the side of his former team, Oklahoma City Thunder, as he guided Milwaukee Bucks to a 110-93 victory in the 2025-26 NBA Regular Season on Thursday night (Friday in the Philippines) in Oklahoma City.
The 6-foot-9 Dieng finished with a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds, along with six assists and four blocks against his former team, which traded him shortly before the deadline last week.
The Bucks played without head coach Doc Rivers, who was attending a funeral, with assistant Darvin Ham serving as acting coach. Milwaukee also missed All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo due to a right calf strain.
Oklahoma City was likewise shorthanded, missing reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander due to an abdominal strain and co-star Jalen Williams because of a right hamstring strain.
AJ Green scored 17 points for Milwaukee, Bobby Portis added 15 points and 12 rebounds, Kyle Kuzma contributed 14, while Cameron Thomas and Kevin Porter Jr. had 12 apiece.
Isaiah Joe led the Thunder with 17 points, Chet Holmgren contributed 16 points and 13 rebounds, while Filipino-American guard Jared McCain finished with 13 markers off the bench.
The game also marked the NBA debut of Nikola Topic, the No. 12 overall pick in the 2024 draft. Topic, who had not played this season after being diagnosed with testicular cancer and previously missing time with a torn ACL, scored two points along with one rebound and one assist in 12 minutes.
Meanwhile, Portland Trail Blazers created a separation from the shorthanded Utah Jazz from third quarter onwards to score a victory.
Jrue Holiday tallied 31 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists to lead the Trail Blazers, Donovan Clingan added a double-double of 23 points and 18 rebounds, while Jerami Grant, Scoot Henderson, and Toumani Camara had 18, 15, and 14, respectively.
Brice Sensabaugh led the Jazz with 25 points, rookie Ace Bailey, Kyle Filipowski, and Isaiah Collier added 15 markers apiece, while Svi Mykhailiuk contributed 14 markers./PN
