Milwaukee Bucks head coach Jason Kidd was hopeful his team would take its close loss to the Golden State Warriors on Saturday as a learning experience.
It appeared his team was paying attention, as the Bucks were able to come back and hold on to a tight lead in a 93-89 victory over the Orlando Magic on Monday night.
“I think you look to that last game. We were in that game and we can draw from (that game), and again we understand we’ve got to get stops if we want to win and we got stops,” Kidd said. “You tip your hat to a young team that didn’t panic, and so we could have easily panicked and fold a tent, you can probably maybe expect a little let down after a high of playing Golden State and I thought the guys showed a lot of character.”
BENCH GIVES BIG BOOST
It was a rough start for the Bucks, who were forced to pull Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker early to try and get a spark from the bench.
After falling behind 18-2, Kidd brought in Michael Beasley, Mirza Teletovic and Malcolm Brogdon. The three bench players helped the Bucks finish the quarter on an 18-11 run, a key factor in keeping Milwaukee in the game.
“We didn’t get off to the best start, so we had to rely on our defense to get back in the game,” Kidd said. “Beasley was great off the bench. Mirza was great off the bench. (Greg Monroe) was great off the bench for us. That was something where again it was a team effort, and everyone who participated helped us win.”
Beasley, Teletovic and Brogdon combined to finish the game with 26 points, 10 rebounds and four assists. The entire Magic bench combined only scored 23 points.
DYNAMIC DUO AT IT AGAIN
Aside from Beasley, Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker were the only other Bucks players to finish the game with double-digit points.
Parker had a great shooting night, finishing the game with 22 points on a career high five made three pointers.
“Understanding what Jabari has done and the work he has put in, he made some big shots for us, he made threes, he got fouled on a three-pointer at the end, and so you can just see his comfort level and it’s just going to make him that much better being able to shoot the three with that consistency,” Jason said.
Antetokounmpo produced another triple-double, the sixth of his career, finishing the game with 21 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, five steals and three blocks.
“We all know he can fill up the stat sheets. So now the next step is filling up the stat sheet that leads to wins,” J-Kidd said. “We ask a lot from him and we expect a lot, but he is only 21 years old and he’s learning the position of the point guard and he’s going to make mistakes; but being positive and his teammates helping him and the coaching staff understanding it’s not easy when everybody wants the ball. And to be able to run the team, that’s a heavy load to do on a nightly basis and he’s doing a great job with it.”
TEAM EFFORT
The Bucks took the momentum from the end of the first quarter and carried it into the second, ending the first half with a five-point lead.
Milwaukee fell behind by five after three quarters, but quickly took a lead with 9:15 left in the game and never gave it back.
It was a great team effort for the Bucks, who showed coach Kidd what great ball movement can do, finishing the game with 25 assists on 35 made baskets.
“That just shows we’re sharing the ball,” Kidd said. “Giannis has a triple-double, understanding he was finding guys, catch and shoot is one of our strengths, we didn’t over-dribble, we shared the ball and that’s how we got back in the game.”
NEXT UP
Up next the Bucks host the Toronto Raptors.
Milwaukee is 1-10 in its previous 11 matchups with Toronto, so coach Kidd will need his team to step up in order to break that streak on Friday night.
“It’s going to be someone on any given night,” Jason said. “Sharing the ball is the way we need to play if we’re going to have any success.”
