Davis Scores 34 in Wizards Debut as Washington Beats Bucks 128-116

Washington waited all summer to see its new team on the floor. On Wednesday night at Capital One Arena, Anthony Davis gave the home crowd the show it came for.

Davis scored 34 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in his Wizards debut, and Washington beat the Milwaukee Bucks 128-116 in the season opener for both teams. He shot 11 of 20 from the field and 11 of 14 at the free throw line, and he became the first player in franchise history to record at least 30 points and 10 rebounds in his debut, according to game reports.

Trae Young, the other half of Washington's rebuilt backcourt and frontcourt pairing, added 20 points and 13 assists in his first game for the Wizards. Kyshawn George scored 18 points, and Bilal Coulibaly, starting in place of the injured No. 1 pick AJ Dybantsa, had 11 points and four steals.

Milwaukee led for most of the night

The final score hides how long Milwaukee controlled this game. The Bucks led 56-51 at halftime and 93-90 after three quarters. Tyler Herro scored 24 points with nine assists in his debut for his hometown team, and five Milwaukee players reached double figures. Rookie Brayden Burries, the No. 10 pick in the draft, scored 12 points with five rebounds in his first NBA game.

Davis made life hard for the Milwaukee frontcourt all night. He helped foul out Bucks center Kel'El Ware and put Myles Turner in foul trouble early in the second half, which opened up the lane as the game wore on.

A 21-2 run settles it

Milwaukee still led 96-90 early in the fourth quarter. Washington then scored 21 of the next 23 points, flipping a six point deficit into a lead the Wizards never gave back. The Bucks cut a 13 point gap to seven late, but Washington secured two hard offensive rebounds in the final five minutes to close the door.

The second half told the story. Washington shot 63 percent from the field after halftime and outscored Milwaukee 77-60 across the third and fourth quarters, including a 38-23 edge in the fourth.

Two teams starting over

Both rosters look nothing like they did a year ago. Washington acquired Davis and Young last season and then drafted Dybantsa first overall. Dybantsa sat out the opener with an ankle injury he picked up in the preseason finale. Head coach Brian Keefe has called him day to day. Milwaukee, meanwhile, traded away franchise cornerstone Giannis Antetokounmpo in the offseason and opened the season with a new core built around Herro.

The win also lands differently in Washington because of what came before it. The Wizards won 50 games combined over the previous three seasons. One game does not erase that, but a debut win behind 34 points from Davis is the start the franchise sold its fans all summer.

Washington hosts Toronto on Friday, Oct. 23. Milwaukee hosts Chicago the same day.