A dominant effort from Giannis Antetokounmpo helped Milwaukee get past Brooklyn 110-99 Wednesday night in a matchup of two Eastern Conference contenders.

The Bucks trailed by 12 at the half but used an explosive third quarter to overcome the deficit, outscoring the Nets 35-21. Antetokounmpo had 17 of his game-high 43 points in the third to help Milwaukee take a 78-76 lead into the fourth quarter. The teams went back-and-forth to open the final period before a Jordan Nwora 3-pointer with 9:43 left gave the Bucks a lead they would not relinquish.

Milwaukee’s defense was a big part of the story, with Brooklyn managing just 44 points after halftime. The Nets shot 39.5% from the field and only 25.9% from beyond the arc. Kevin Durant led the way with 33 points, while Kyrie Irving had 27 (0-for-7 on 3P).

In addition to posting his second straight game of 40 or more points, Antetokounmpo had 14 rebounds, five assists and three blocks, while also turning it over seven times. Bobby Portis gave Milwaukee a season-high 20 points off the bench. Jrue Holiday finished with 17 points.

Brooklyn coach Steve Nash was thrown out in the third quarter after getting a pair of technical fouls for arguing with the officials.

Milwaukee improved to 3-0 on the season, while the Nets dropped to 1-3.

The Bucks will be back in action Friday against the Knicks at Fiserv Forum.