Jason Kidd and the Milwaukee Bucks have hit an untimely skid—one they nearly ended on the road against his former team Friday night.
However, a triple overtime thriller left the Bucks painfully short against the Brooklyn Nets in a 129-127 defeat, despite a 22-point and 21-rebound from Zaza Pachulia.
Then, Sunday night, LeBron James and the red-hot Cleveland Cavaliers were just too much, and the MVP candidate chalked up 28 points, 10 rebounds and six assists in a 108-90 win over Milwaukee at Quicken Loans Arena.
Coach Kidd constantly tells his team that wins are going to take a collective effort, and since the beginning of the season the Milwaukee Bucks have been a top bench scoring in the NBA, but as of late the bench scoring has been non-existent.
“I think our bench has to do a better job throughout the whole season,” Jason said. “Our bench has been playing at a very high level and right now our bench hasn’t given us anything. We gotta get something from our bench.”
3 OT THRILLER
Against Brooklyn, the Bucks bench produced just 14 points in a triple-overtime game and it didn’t get much better on Sunday against Cleveland where the bench scored just 16 points.
“You look at our starters, they are giving everything they can,” Jason said. “Even though their turnovers are high this is a team game, and we’ve been built as a team. So we have to get something better from our bench.”
On Friday night in Brooklyn, the Bucks pulled down a season-high 81 rebounds in what was the second triple overtime game between the two teams this season. The plethora of rebounds, 38 offensive, helped Milwaukee take 129 shot attempts, but the Bucks made just 49 shots (38.0%).
Khris Middleton finished with 29 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Giannis Antetokounmpo had 23 points and 14 rebounds, and Ersan Ilyasova added 20 points and 13 boards, but both fouled out in the third overtime.
Milwaukee scored a season-high 68 points in the first half and stretched its lead to 79-65 midway through the third. However, the Nets stormed back behind a 32-point effort from Brook Lopez.
Still, Antetokounmpo had a good look on a jumper in the final seconds of regulation that would have won the game. His miss marked the third time in the last four road games the Bucks have missed potential game-winners in the final seconds.
“What can we do?” Antetokounmpo said. “I had a chance to send it home but I didn’t make the shot. It felt good when it left my hand. We were up three (in the second overtime) and we let Joe Johnson make the three. We’ve just got to keep working hard and playing hard because we’ve got to win some games.”
Point guard Michael Carter-Williams scored on a pair of drives to help the Bucks take a 117-114 lead late in the second overtime period, but Johnson got free for his three-pointer to tie it and force the third overtime. Carter-Williams shot 7-of-26 and finished with 19 points, six rebounds and four assists.
Lopez opened the third overtime with a dunk and three-point play as Bucks forward Ersan Ilyasova fouled out while contesting the shot. Lopez, who finished with 32 points and 18 rebounds, had the first five points of the third overtime.
“The game of basketball goes that way for you sometimes,” J-Kidd said. “We had some great looks. We had an opportunity to get a stop and Joe makes a big three. We had control of it and we just didn’t shut the door. They set a great screen and Giannis was trailing. He (Johnson) stepped up and made a big three.”
The defeat spoiled a sensational night for Pachulia, who became the first NBA player to grab 18 offensive rebounds in a game since Detroit’s Dennis Rodman in 1992. The Bucks pulled down 81 total rebounds and a franchise-record 38 offensive boards.
“Z played off the charts for us,” Jason said. “He set the tone on defense and offense. You’re sad that we wasted a good performance on his part.”
LEBRON BEATS BUCKS
MCW scored 19 points on 9-of-14 shooting with five assists and four steals, but there just wasn’t enough fire-power against the second-seeded Cleveland Cavs. Kyrie Irving had 20 points with seven assists, and JR Smith poured in 23 including a 7-of-9 shooting display from downtown.
Milwaukee didn’t help itself by turning the ball over 23 times leading to 28 points for the visitors at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.
The Cavaliers trailed by nine at halftime and 11 in the third quarter. The Bucks seemed rejuvenated on their home floor, building a 53-44 halftime lead while looking to end a long losing streak of five before LeBron turned it on and gave Milwaukee their sixth straight loss.
“For any team, not just LeBron, when you give those guys free opportunities like that … they’re going to make you pay for it and they did,” Coach Kidd said.
Coach Kidd nailed it on the head. Cleveland had just 13 turnovers as a team; the Milwaukee backcourt had 13, tallying MCW’s six, Middleton’s five and Jerryd Bayless’ two.
“Our backcourt had just as many (turnovers) as the whole team for Cleveland,” J-Kidd said. “They had 11 and Cleveland only had 13 as a team. As a whole, we’ve got to do a better job as a team taking care of the ball. We rely on our defense and it keeps us in ball games. But if we’re throwing the ball away and not getting a shot, it won’t help us.”
The Bucks shot 54.3 percent, but it hardly mattered because of all their other problems, including defensive lapses that led to a 26-5 run by Cleveland. The run erased a six-point deficit late in the third quarter and gave the Cavaliers a 93-78 lead with 6:19 left in the game.
NEXT UP
At 34-36, the Bucks still remain in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, half a game ahead of the seventh-place Miami Heat. They’re also still three games up on the Boston Celtics, who currently hold the eighth spot in the conference.
Milwaukee will host the Heat Tuesday night for a crucial seeding tilt, looking to get back on track on its home floor.
The Bucks are already a perfect 3-0 against the defending East champs this season, and a sweep would go a long way toward securing a playoff berth.
Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. ET Tuesday night.
