Jason Kidd and the Milwaukee Bucks probably wish they could play the Brooklyn Nets every game after defeating them for the second time in 48 hours.
After a strong first half with a 10 point lead, the Nets made things interesting in the third when they outscored the Bucks 32-25 to cut the deficit to three.
“We had a lead there at halftime, up 10, they kept playing. They’re going to keep playing the same way. They’re going to fire off some threes, make some threes, miss some threes,” Kidd said. “For us to compete and find a way to win we score 112 points and so for that we’re moving the ball, everybody’s touching it so this is a big win, especially after beating them on the road understanding how hard it is in this league to beat the same team twice in 48 hours.”
The Nets had a one-point lead with 5:01 left in the game, but Kidd was very pleased with his team’s composure in the 112-103 victory.
“No one panicked. Understand they made a run, basketball is about a game of runs, we made our run in the first half, had a 10 point lead and that kind of disappeared there in that third, but guys still made defensive plays which started us on the offensive end, you know in the open court,” Jason said. “Again sharing the ball, I didn’t think we had that many turnovers tonight which is a plus, we’re getting shots and we found a way to win at home.”
Jabari Parker and Giannis Antetokounmpo played big roles in this one, helping secure the fourth quarter victory.
Parker finished the game with 15 points and eight rebounds. Antetokounmpo added 16 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and five blocks.
“We kept our composure. We got stops. That’s what got us our lead there in the first half and in that third quarter we were just trading baskets with them and they won that quarter,” Kidd said. “But for us, in that fourth no one panicked, we played through Jabari, Giannis; and they made plays coming down the stretch.”
Antetokounmpo played a tremendous role in stopping Brook Lopez, who started the game 0-10 and finished with 13 points.
“Giannis was great help tonight for us. He made some great blocks, I think he had five of them, and so it just shows he doesn’t have to score 20 a night to have an impact in a game,” Kidd said. “He can find guys, make plays but defensively, steals, I thought he was reading the passing lane really well in the half-court coming up with steals and then blocks which we just talked about, he had some big blocks for us tonight.”
John Henson did his fair share in stopping Lopez while also contributing on the offensive end. Henson led the Bucks in scoring with 20 points and added seven rebounds and two blocks.
“Brook, he’s an all-star in this league. He knows how to play, knows how to score and 0-10 we knew coming out he wasn’t going to end that way,” J-Kidd said. “Maybe he started off too close with the three, once he got back a little bit farther behind the three point line it was an easier shot. He’s so talented, he can knock down those shots and score and get to the free throw line, and so again I thought our centers did a really good job tonight.”
