With Yi resting on the bench, Milwaukee missed its first six shots of the second quarter during a 16-1 Rockets run. Yi returned with 8:54 left in the first half and was promptly called for goaltending when he leaped high to swat Shane Battier's shot.

Yi ended Milwaukee's drought with his first field goal, swishing a jumper from the wing with 7:52 left in the half to cut Houston's lead to 40-28.

But Yao looked better in the first half, scoring 14 with six rebounds and three assists to help Houston to a 50-41 lead.

Yi shined in the third quarter to help the Bucks close to within six.

He banked in a straight-on 3-pointer 40 seconds before halftime, drawing a disbelieving roll of the eyes from McGrady, then laid in an alley-oop pass from Redd. Yi sank another 3-pointer with 5:41 left in the third quarter to cut Houston's lead to 66-60.

"He didn't score a lot in the first half," Yao said, "but he turned it around in the second half. He really helped his team stay in the game."

With Yi on the bench again, the Bucks cut Houston's lead to three early in the fourth. Yao kept the Rockets ahead, flipping in a short jumper and hitting two free throws for an 82-77 lead.

The two then hit three consecutive shots. Yi hit a running jumper with 8:26 remaining. Yao answered with another turnaround. Yi swished a 3-pointer to make it 84-82.

Yi said he was never trying to match Yao's numbers.

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