Milwaukee hosts Denver following Middleton's 51-point showing

Denver Nuggets (33-15, second in the Western Conference) vs. Milwaukee Bucks (41-6, first in the Eastern Conference)

Milwaukee; Friday, 9 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Milwaukee plays the Denver Nuggets after Khris Middleton scored 51 points in the Bucks' 151-131 victory against the Wizards.

The Bucks are 22-2 on their home court. Milwaukee averages 51.6 rebounds per game and is 32-0 when winning the rebound battle.

The Nuggets are 14-9 on the road. Denver is 6-3 in games decided by less than 4 points.

The matchup Friday is the first meeting of the season between the two teams.

TOP PERFORMERS: Middleton is shooting 50.3 percent and averaging 20.2 points. Wesley Matthews is averaging 1.5 made 3-pointers and 6.1 points over the last 10 games for Milwaukee.

Will Barton leads the Nuggets averaging 1.7 made 3-pointers while scoring 14.8 points per game and shooting 35.9 percent from beyond the arc. Nikola Jokic has averaged 22.5 points and totaled 11.1 rebounds while shooting 50.3 percent over the last 10 games for Denver.

LAST 10 GAMES: Bucks: 9-1, averaging 121.1 points, 50.8 rebounds, 26.5 assists, 6.9 steals and 5.4 blocks per game while shooting 48.8 percent from the field. Their opponents have averaged 108.5 points on 40.7 percent shooting.

Nuggets: 7-3, averaging 109.9 points, 46.2 rebounds, 25.8 assists, 9.7 steals and 4.6 blocks per game while shooting 45.3 percent from the field. Their opponents have averaged 107.7 points on 46.3 percent shooting.

INJURIES: Bucks: George Hill: out (hamstring), Donte DiVincenzo: day to day (ankle), Giannis Antetokounmpo: day to day (shoulder).

Nuggets: Mason Plumlee: out (foot), Bol Bol: out (foot), Jamal Murray: out (ankle), Paul Millsap: out (left knee contusion).

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.