The Milwaukee Bucks had an opportunity late in the game to knock off one of the top teams in the East on Wednesday night at home, but a big shot by a player dubbed by many — Coach Jason Kidd included — as the best in the world, sunk Milwaukee’s hopes for a signature win in their playoff push.
LeBron James followed a clutch bucket by O.J. Mayo, which brought Milwaukee within two inside the final minute, with an even more clutch trey to suck the win out of the Bucks’ sails and give Cleveland a five-point edge with 14 seconds to go. From there the Cavaliers, the No. 2 team in the East, salted away a 104-99 win over Milwaukee.
Afterward Coach Kidd credited James’ play down the stretch to put the Bucks away. But Jason also heaped praise on his team for the way they fought throughout the night, playing such a competitive game against a Cavs team that has run roughshod over the league with 18 wins in 23 games since the All-Star Break.
“I thought it was a great game by the guys. It was a two-point game, we’re on defense and the best player in the world makes a tough three. The guys played at a very high level, so yes, they put themselves in a position to win. That’s first and foremost the most important thing,” Jason said. “He was going for the kill shot, and he delivered. That’s what MVP players do. Duds was all over him and made it tough, a step-back three…he delivered for them tonight.”
Jason’s squad indeed came with an inspired performance against the Cavs, who locked up the No. 2 seed and the Central Division crown with the win.The Bucks weren’t just shooting, they were making as well. In front of their home crowd of 14,629 at BMO Haris Bradley Center, Milwaukee shot 50 percent from the field, limited the turnover numbers to just 12 for the game, and accumulated 30 assists.
Milwaukee’s shot-making was encouraging, especially against a Cleveland team that likes to get after it on the defensive end of the floor. Khris Middleton had 16 points on 7-of-10 shooting and Zaza Pachulia helped with 19 points and 10 rebounds., But the Bucks were led by point guard Michael Carter-Williams, who scored 30 points on 22 shots and had eight assists.
The big night from MCW earned some big praise from Coach Kidd. The future Hall of Fame point guard lauded his young guard’s effort after the game, as well as his overall improvement since he joined the Bucks.
“I think you look at being 23 years old, continuing to work on his offensive game since the trade,” Jason said. “He’s starting to trend up, getting comfortable playing with his teammates, understanding what the guys need from him on the offensive end and the defensive end. I thought he attacked as well tonight as he has all season, and he needs to continue to do that.”
Carter-Williams carried the Bucks throughout, and down the wire, Milwaukee was right there. Mayo hit a fall away floater over Kevin Love with 35.5 seconds left in the final frame to bring the deficit to just two at 99-97.
On the ensuing possession James dribbled down the game clock to 15 seconds, and the shot-clock to about three before he hit a deep step back three over Dudley to extend the Cleveland lead to five, undoubtedly icing the game. The crowd fell silent, Coach Kidd called a timeout and although Carter-Williams drove in for a quick layup on the next possession to make it a three-point game, the outcome was decided. Kyrie Irving converted his free throws to follow and the Cavaliers won their fourth in a row.
Despite the loss, the Bucks remained sixth in the East, two full games ahead of the Boston Celtics for that spot with four to play. With Cleveland locked into that No. 2 spot, Milwaukee will have to secure the sixth spot to avoid seeing the red-hot Cavs in the postseason. As it stands the Bucks would take on the Toronto Raptors, who hold a tiebreaker over the fourth place Chicago Bulls. But after the game Carter-Williams commented on the approach Milwaukee must take looks to seal the sixth spot.
“We’re focused on ourselves,” Carter-Williams said. “We know we’re in a pretty good position. We’ve just got to stay calm, play our game. Go out there and play hard, listen to our coaches and we’ll be fine.”
NEXT UP
The Bucks (38-40) are still inching closer to securing the sixth seed in the East. They still sit two games up on the Boston Celtics and Brooklyn Nets, who are tied for eighth place, each at 36-42.
Milwaukee meets Boston in the regular season finale on Wednesday, April 15, and Brooklyn this coming Sunday, April 12. But first, the Bucks will head to Madison Square Garden on Friday night to take on the New York Knicks (15-63).
The Bucks are 3-0 against the Knicks this season, but the teams haven’t met since they disposed of the Knicks at home 95-79 in a Jan. 15 victory.
Tipoff for the fourth and final matchup is set for 7:30 p.m. ET.
