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Bucks hold off Bulls as Giannis goes off again

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Giannis Antetokounmpo – File Photo – Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images)

Giannis Antetokounmpo had another dominant performance as the Milwaukee Bucks outlasted the Chicago Bulls 124-115 on Thursday night at Fiserv Forum.

Antetokounmpo poured in 38 points and pulled down 16 rebounds as the Bucks started to take control in the third quarter.  Eric Bledsoe added 31 points and eight assists for Milwaukee, which has won six-of-seven to improve to 8-3.

The Bucks played their first game without Khris Middleton, who is sidelined with a left knee contusion.  Second-year guard Donte DiVincenzo got the start in Middleton’s place.

The Bulls took a 66-65 lead into the locker room at halftime, thanks in part to their 11 for 24 shooting from three-point range.  Bulls guard Coby White led the charge with 19 points in the first half and 26 for the game.

The Bucks meanwhile missed their first 7 three-point attempts of the third quarter and made just 6 of 33 (18.2%) for the game from distance.

Antetokounmpo scored 30 or more points in his sixth straight game, matching the franchise record set by Marques Johnson in 1978.

Next up for the Bucks is a three-game road trip, starting at Indiana on Saturday night.

 

Giannis leads Bucks past OKC

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Giannis Antetokounmpo had 35 points and 16 rebounds as the Milwaukee Bucks wrapped up their four-game road trip with a 121-119 win over the Thunder in Oklahoma City on Sunday night.

Eric Bledsoe added 25 points, including two crucial free throws in the last four seconds as the Bucks have won five of their last six games and finished their trip out west with a 3-1 record.

The Bucks win came at a cost, though.  Khris Middleton left the game with a leg injury and did not return.

Dennis Schroder led the Thunder off the bench with 25 points and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 22.  Chris Paul hit a three with less than a second left for the final margin.

Oklahoma City has lost two of its last three games.

The Bucks get a few days off now.  They return to Fiserv Forum on Thursday night to face the Chicago Bulls.

 

Bucks blow past Timberwolves

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Giannis Antetokounmpo – File Photo

The Milwaukee Bucks opened a four-game road trip with a convincing 134-106 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center in Minneapolis on Monday night.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 34 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Bucks, posting a double-double in all seven games this season.

Khris Middleton added 26 points and Eric Bledsoe had 22 as the Bucks (5-2) won their third straight game.

Andrew Wiggins scored 25 points to pace the Timberwolves (2-3).  They played without Karl-Anthony Towns who sat out while serving a two-game suspension for a fight with Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid last week.

The game was delayed almost an hour at the start because of a crooked rim.  The baskets needed to be swapped out and the game, which was set to start at 7 p.m., didn’t tip off until 7:59 p.m.

Giannis named Eastern Conference Player of the Week

Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo has been named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played from Oct. 28-Nov. 3. [Read more…]

Cold second half sees Bucks fall to Celtics

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The Boston Celtics outscored the Milwaukee Bucks by 27 points in the second half and went on to post a 116-105 win in Boston.

Kemba Walker scored a game-high 32 points for the Celtics, who improved to 3-1.  Jayson Tatum added 25 points and Gordon Hayward had 21 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.

Khris Middleton poured in 26 points and Giannis Antetokounmpo added 22 points and 14 rebounds as the Bucks dropped to 2-2 on the season.

The Bucks hit 5 of 9 from three-point range in the first half, then went 9 of 36 the rest of the way.  The Bucks managed just 34 points in the paint.

The Bucks remaining starters, Eric Bledsoe, Brook Lopez and Wes Matthews combined to hit just 6 of 24 from the field.

As concerning as the Bucks cold spell was, Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer was even more concerned with his teams defense, or lack there of it in the second half.

The Bucks are off today and face the Magic in Orlando on Friday night.

 

Bledsoe set for Bucks opener in Houston

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Eric Bledsoe File Photo – Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images)

When Milwaukee Bucks point guard Eric Bledsoe left the court on October 9 with an injury, it was feared that he wouldn’t be ready to return for the start of the regular season.

At the time, it was believed that Bledsoe suffered an oblique injury, but instead, it was cracked cartilage in his rib cage.

After going through the majority of practice on Saturday, he followed that with a full practice on Tuesday.  Now Bledsoe has been cleared to play and start the season opener against the Houston Rockets on Thursday night.

Bledsoe’s return means the Bucks are 100% healthy for the opener as Mike Budenholzer has his entire 15-player roster available.  He’ll start Bledsoe, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Brook Lopez and newcomer Wes Matthews.  Matthews takes over at the shooting guard spot after Malcolm Brogdon was traded to the Indiana Pacers in July.

That group hasn’t had a lot of time together in preseason games, but they’ve spent considerable time working together in practice.  We’ll see how well that translates to regular season game action starting Thursday night.

 

Bucks cruise past Utah in exhibition home opener

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Giannis Antetokounmpo – File Photo

After not playing many of their regulars on Monday night in Chicago, the Milwaukee Bucks used their starters on Wednesday night and cruised to a 133-99 win over the Utah Jazz at Fiserv Forum.

Giannis Antetokounmpo took the ball to the rim time after time, getting multiple dunks to finish with 22 points 11 rebounds and four assists in 20+ minutes of playing time.

Khris Middleton and Brook Lopez added 14 points each.  Wes Matthews joined the starters on Wednesday night and finished with eight points, three rebounds and two assists in 17 minutes.

Donte DiVincenzo bounced back from a poor shooting night in Chicago on Monday by scoring 10 points on 4 of 7 shooting.  He added four rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Kyle Korver played his first game for the Bucks and took three shots, making all three of his three-pointers for nine points.  Thanasis Antetokounmpo also finished with 9 points and five rebounds.

Bucks starting point guard Eric Bledsoe did leave the game in the second quarter with an oblique strain.  The Bucks are hoping that’s an injury that won’t keep him out long.

The Bucks are 2-0 in exhibition play and will travel to Dallas to face the Mavericks on Friday night.

Bucks open preseason with victory over Bulls in Chicago

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Brook & Robin Lopez – Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images).

Playing without a number of their regulars, the Milwaukee Bucks opened the exhibition season with a 122-112 win over the Chicago Bulls at the United Center.

Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Eric Bledsoe, George Hill, Ersan Ilyasova and Kyle Korver all skipped Monday night’s game, as did D.J. Wilson who missed the game with a strained left hamstring.

Both Brook and Robin Lopez did suit up and play for the Bucks.  Robin Lopez led the Bucks with 14 points, 5 rebounds and 3 blocks in 19 minutes.  Brook Lopez had 13 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks in 18 1/2 minutes.

The Bucks also got 12 points and 9 rebounds from Sterling Brown.  Point guard Frank Mason III started at point guard and scored 14 points with six assists and four steals in 27 minutes.

Thanasis Antetokounmpo had nine points and 10 rebounds.

The Bucks return home to host the Utah Jazz at Fiserv Forum on Wednesday night.

 

Bucks season is on the brink after game 5 loss

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Eric Bledsoe – File Photo – Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images).

The Milwaukee Bucks are facing playoff elimination after losing home court advantage and falling to the Toronto Raptors 105-99 at Fiserv Forum on Thursday night.

The Bucks captured the first two games of the series, but have now dropped three straight for the first time this season.

Kawhi Leonard scored 35 points, hitting the 30 point mark for the fourth time in the series.  Leonard added five three-pointers and had seven rebounds and nine assists.  Fred VanVleet added 21 points, hitting 7 of 9 three-pointers in the Toronto victory.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 24 points for the Bucks, while Eric Bledsoe added 20.  Guard Malcolm Brogdon returned to the starting lineup and added 18 points and 11 rebounds.

The Bucks led by 10 after the first quarter and as many as 14 in the first half, but maintaining consistency on offense was a problem again.

Khris Middleton struggled offensively, not hitting his first field goal of the game until the first minute of the fourth quarter.  Middleton had missed his first six shots.

The Bucks now head to Toronto for Game 6 of the series, needing a victory to get the series back to Milwaukee for a game seven on Memorial Day.

Antetokounmpo & Bledsoe named to NBA All-Defensive First Team

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Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and guard Eric Bledsoe have both been named to the 2018-19 NBA All-Defensive First Team.  This is the first time since 1990-91 (Alvin Robertson) that the Bucks have had a player selected to the All-Defensive First Team and just the third time in franchise history that Milwaukee has had two players selected to the All-Defensive First Team in the same season.

The Bucks were the top-rated defense in the NBA this season and held opponents to a league-low 43.3 field goal percentage.  Antetokounmpo averaged 1.5 blocks per game, the second highest mark of his career and Bledsoe added 1.5 steals a game.

For Antetokounmpo, this is his first selection to the All-Defensive First Team after being named Second Team All-Defense [Read more…]

Bucks crushed by Raptors, series tied 2-2

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Khris Middleton – File Photo / Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images).

The Milwaukee Bucks dropped back-to-back games for the first time in the playoffs and just the second time all season, falling to the Raptors 120-102 in Toronto on Tuesday night.

The Bucks shot out of the gate playing well offensively, but that didn’t last long.  Defensively, the Bucks didn’t stop the Raptors all night.

Kyle Lowry finished with 25 points, 12 of them coming in the first quarter.  Kawhi Leonard had 19 points, Norman Powell added 18 points, Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka added 17 and Fred VanVleet added 13 for the Raptors.

Khris Middleton led the Bucks with 30 points and dished out seven assists and Giannis Antetokounmpo added 25, with 11 of the 25 coming in the first quarter.

That was it for the Bucks, who got little from Eric Bledsoe again.  His minutes dropped to 20.  But his replacements, Malcolm Brogdon and George Hill struggled as well, giving the Bucks little from the guard position.

Brogdon, after scoring 20 points in game three, had just four points and missed his first eight shots.  George Hill took just two shots.

Ersan Ilyasova picked up four fouls in just 10 minutes and never got into a rhythm.  He finished with just seven points.

Whatever coach Mike Budenholzer tried didn’t work as the series draws even at two.  Now the Bucks have another quick turn-around, trying to figure out how they can get back on track.  Milwaukee hosts game five on Thursday night at Fiserv Forum.