Cavaliers Vs Bucks: Porter Jr. Follows Up Fadeaway as Jarrett Allen's Buzzer Putback Is Waved Off in 118-116 Finish
Milwaukee — In a tight Feb. 25, 2026 showdown, Kevin Porter Jr. scored 20 points and hit the decisive late jumper as the Milwaukee Bucks edged the short-handed Cleveland Cavaliers 118-116 in Milwaukee. The result was capped by a dramatic final sequence in which Jarrett Allen's basket at the buzzer was ruled no good, leaving the Cavs agonizingly short.
Cavaliers Vs Bucks — final sequence and decisive plays
The closing stretch featured a flurry of lead changes and clutch plays. Jaylon Tyson pulled Cleveland to 116-114 with two free throws. After Milwaukee’s Kyle Kuzma missed a 3-pointer, Dennis Schroder drove and scored from the right side of the lane to tie the game at 116 with 35. 6 seconds remaining. Porter then converted a free-throw-line jumper to put the Bucks ahead 118-116 with 20. 2 seconds left. Other coverage described the go-ahead basket as a fadeaway jumper with roughly 20 seconds to go. At the buzzer Jarrett Allen rose for a lay-in that Cleveland thought tied the game, but the attempt was ruled no good after replay; another account described the play as being ruled that time had expired.
Cavaliers' injuries and lineup absences
Cleveland was notably short-handed. James Harden did not play after breaking his right thumb the previous night in a home victory over New York. Donovan Mitchell also sat out while nursing a strained right groin, and Evan Mobley was absent; one reference lists Mobley's issue as a calf problem. Those absences forced Cleveland to rely on reserves and altered rotations for the visiting Cavs.
Bucks' production and balanced scoring
Milwaukee presented a balanced scoring attack. Kevin Porter Jr. led the Bucks with 20 points and Ryan Rollins added 18. Kyle Kuzma finished with 17, and one recap noted that seven Bucks finished in double figures. AJ Green contributed 12. Dennis Schroder, who was acquired from Sacramento on Feb. 1, recorded 26 points in the game — his most in nine games with Cleveland — having had 15 at the break.
Giannis Antetokounmpo did not play, missing his 13th consecutive game for the Bucks with a strained right calf.
Game flow: runs, 3-point barrage and turning points
The first half was defined by momentum swings and heavy perimeter activity. The teams combined for 50 three-point attempts in the first half, with Milwaukee making 39 percent and Cleveland 33 percent. Both clubs had runs of at least seven unanswered points; Milwaukee countered with a 9-0 run to take control in the second quarter.
At halftime Jarrett Allen led all scorers with 16 and Schroder had 15. Milwaukee opened the third quarter on an 11-0 run, punctuated by two Kuzma three-pointers, which put the Bucks up 73-63. Cleveland answered with a 10-0 stretch that erased Milwaukee's largest lead, a 12-point edge, and the Cavs entered the fourth up 94-93. The final quarter remained a back-and-forth, nail-biter until Porter’s late basket and Allen’s denied buzzer attempt decided the outcome.
Standings implications and context moving forward
The loss was Cleveland's second in 10 games, dropping the Cavaliers into fourth place in the Eastern Conference and a half-game behind New York. The defeat snapped Cleveland's seven-game winning streak against Milwaukee; the teams meet again later in the season, with a chance on March 17 to even the season series in the fourth and final matchup.
One recap characterized the Bucks' result as their fifth victory in six games, while another described it as their second straight win and eighth in 10, reflecting slightly different takes on Milwaukee's recent form in the aftermath of this tight finish.
