PHILADELPHIA -- With 20 games left in the regular season, the Milwaukee Bucks are mounting a playoff push.

Giannis Antetokounmpo is leading the charge.

The wiry 6-11 forward known as the "Greek Freak" collected 24 points, eight rebounds, five assists and three blocked shots as the Bucks beat the Philadelphia 76ers 112-98 on Monday night.

Tony Snell added 21 points for the Bucks, who led by as many as 27 en route to their third straight victory.

Now 29-33, they are 1.5 games out of the Eastern Conference's eighth and final playoff spot.

"Right now we're playing our best basketball," Antetokounmpo said.

Malcolm Brodgon and Khris Middleton scored 13 points apiece for Milwaukee, and Greg Monroe contributed 12.

"It's great they all believe they can make this push and it's going to take all of us," coach Jason Kidd said. "Everybody has to chip in and it starts at the defensive end."

The Bucks limited the Sixers to 39.1-percent shooting in building a 91-68 lead through three quarters. Milwaukee also turned 14 Philadelphia turnovers into 20 points in the course of the game.

Justin Anderson matched his career high of 19 points to pace the Sixers, who were without center Jahlil Okafor (sore right knee) for the second straight game.

Robert Covington had 15, and Dario Saric finished with 14 points, eight rebounds and six assists.

"What can I say?" Saric said. "We started again minus-17 (i.e., down 60-43 at halftime). It's unacceptable, if you ask me, because we don't have enough guys."

Philadelphia recently lost rookie center Joel Embiid for the season with a knee injury, and forward Ben Simmons, the top pick in the 2016 draft, will miss the season with a broken foot. The Sixers also traded center/forward Nerlens Noel and forward Ersan Ilyasova two weeks ago.

"The good news is, we've had a lot of practice at this," said coach Brett Brown, who has had teams lacking in talent throughout his four-year tenure. "We will navigate through this."

Shawn Long, making his NBA debut after signing a 10-day contract with Philadelphia earlier in the day, finished with 13 points and seven rebounds while playing a little over 15 minutes off the bench. Long was averaging 20 points and 11 boards for the Delaware 87ers, the Sixers' affiliate in the NBA Development League.

The Bucks never trailed, breezing to a 12-2 lead out of the gate as Snell and Thon Maker nailed 3-pointers. The cushion grew to 27-15 on two free throws by Monroe with 1:03 left in the first quarter, and 52-33 on Brodgon's layup with 4:03 remaining in the first half.

Snell had 18 points and was 4-of-6 from 3-point range in the first two quarters. The Bucks, who were 9-of-16 from the arc in all, shot 52.3 percent from the floor.

Covington, Saric and Anderson had seven points each for the Sixers.

Antetokounmpo notched six straight points in a 35-second burst in the third quarter, giving Milwaukee a 78-52 bulge. He had 12 points in the period.

The Bucks took their biggest lead, 98-71, on Middleton's tip-in early in the fourth quarter.

"Our playoff season has started now," Kidd said. "It starts with our defense."

And on Monday it often ended with effective offense.

"When the ball is moving like that and guys are making shots," Kidd said, "it's fun to watch."

NOTES: Sixers G Gerald Henderson started after missing the previous 2 1/2 games with a sore hip. He scored five points in just over 17 minutes. ... Philadelphia F Dario Saric is regarded as a prime candidate for Rookie of the Year, as is C Joel Embiid. Milwaukee G Malcolm Brogdon is also in the conversation. "This is biased," Bucks coach Jason Kidd said, "but my guy, being a second-round pick, is playing at a very high level, running the team, understanding what it takes to win. Hopefully he's there at the end of the marathon and the race, that he wins Rookie of the Year." ... Sixers coach Brett Brown said before the game that it is too early to say whether Embiid or F Ben Simmons will play in the summer league. ... Milwaukee F Michael Beasley missed his fourth straight game with a hyperextended left knee. ... The Sixers announced before the game that C Jahlil Okafor would have his sore right knee examined Tuesday.