Basketball is a game of runs, and that saying proved to be true on Saturday night when the Milwaukee Bucks fell to the Golden State Warriors 124-121 on Saturday night.
The Bucks were the first to get a big run going, ending the first quarter on an 11-0 run and taking a 37-28 lead into the second quarter.
In the second quarter, Golden State retaliated with a run of its own, finishing the quarter on a 15-5 run and a three-point halftime lead.
“That’s what they do, it’s what they’ve done,” Bucks head coach Jason Kidd said. “They look at each quarter, like any good boxer, they try to end the round on a positive note and that’s what they did in the second and carried over into the third.”
The Warriors went on an 18-6 run in the middle of the third quarter and went into the fourth up by 11 points.
The Bucks had one last punch in them and rallied back into the game within three points and a shot at the final buzzer to tie the game, but were ultimately held short in the comeback attempt.
“The guys fought for 48 minutes. When you’re playing a team like the Warriors you’re going to have opportunity. Defensively we got the stops and then offensively we just couldn’t get the ball to go in. We had some great looks there, with Giannis (Antetokounmpo) having the layup, just rimmed out, and then Mirza (Teletovic) with a wide open three,” Kidd said. “So understand, defensively we did a lot of good things; offensively we did a lot of good things, the ball just didn’t bounce our way tonight but I liked our energy and effort and this is something that we can build on.”
BUCKS’ STARS SHINE
Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker carried the load for the Bucks once again. Giannis finished the game with 30 points, six assists, four rebounds and two steals in 41 minutes. Parker added 28 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals in 37 minutes.
Antetokounmpo was forced to play some center due to the Warriors deadly small ball lineup, but J-Kidd thinks The Greek Freak is more than capable of handling the five position.
“He does well. He’s a basketball player who can play multiple positions,” Jason said. “You look at him being seven feet tall, gives you different options, and him playing center was not a problem tonight.”
MIRZA PROVIDES LATE SPARK
While Parker, Antetokounmpo and Matthew Dellavedova were the only three Bucks players to finish the game with double-digit points, Milwaukee had nine different players score, and Kidd loved the effort he got from Teletovic.
“Mirza doesn’t play until the fourth, and he gave us a spark, and that’s just being a true pro,” Kidd said. “Sitting for that long and coming in at a very high level gave us a lift.”
Teletovic played the whole fourth quarter, finishing with three points, three rebounds and two assists.
BUCKS SHOW PROMISE IN LOSS
Overall Kidd was pleased with the effort his team showed, especially on the defensive end.
“Our defense gave us opportunity,” Jason said. “Understanding that down the stretch, or any end of quarters for them is when the Warriors take advantage, and in that second they took advantage with two minutes left and then in the third we were a little bit behind to start the third.”
While the Warriors finished the game with three more assists, J-Kidd credits his team’s movement of the basketball to helping them spark the fourth quarter rally.
“Moving the ball. Whenever we move the ball we’re pretty good. When we get a little bit happy with the dribble, it puts us in a bad position and a negative state,” Kidd said. “So, I thought when we started moving and trusting guys with the pass, it put us back in the game and we got some wide open shots and it was all set of our defense getting stops and rebounding the ball and getting out in transition.”
