The Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Los Angeles Clippers in the Staples Center earlier in the week and made it two victories in Los Angeles on Friday night.
Milwaukee had a strong first half, taking a 15-point lead into halftime, and they needed all of that cushion in a 107-103 victory.
“I thought we came out with the right intent in that first half, the ball was moving. In that second half we kind of didn’t move the ball, we started playing one-on-one,” head coach Jason Kidd said. “I thought Khris (Middleton) carried us there for a stretch. Our bench didn’t give us anything. So for that, that put stress on the starters but they’re not always going to be pretty and we found a way to win on the road.”
The Lakers found a spark of energy when there was a scuffle between the two teams that led to two Lakers getting ejected as well as Greg Monroe.
“It’s part of the game,” Jason said. “After things like that there’s always a momentum swing and it swung their way, but the guys stayed the course, they kept playing and we found a way to keep the lead and finish the game.”
Fortunately for coach Kidd, he got a stellar performance from Khris Middleton who finished with 30 points in 33 minutes.
“He was going and was easy to play through. So we all trust Khris, he made some plays, we didn’t make shots kind of like we just did in the Clipper game. Khris caused a problem, he had two guys on him and now we’ve got to be able to finish the plays but Khris, that’s who we all expect being able to deliver,” J-Kidd said. “Then playing with five fouls, that just shows the trust we have in him that he’s going to be able to stay on the floor.”
With the win the Bucks moved to 37-37 on the season and in seventh place in the Eastern conference.
“You’ve got to play all 82 and the record will be what it is,” Jason said. “We’ve been up and down and we’re starting to go up at the right time so continue our defense to continue to get better, offensively we’re going to make or miss shots but we’re playing as well as anybody right now.”
After a gritty win for the Bucks, they were then were faced with the daunting task of playing the Golden State Warriors on the road in the back end of a back-to-back.
“The maturity of our group, protecting one another, also being in Southern California for multiple days, just understanding that they came and they got the job done,” Kidd said. “They won two games here and so now in this league you’ve got to turn the page and now you’ve got to get ready for Golden State.”
BUCKS RUN OUT OF GAS IN OAKLAND
While the Bucks were able to capture two victories at the Staples Center, they ran out of gas down the stretch in J-Kidd’s hometown against the defending Western Conference champions.
“We got off to a good start, understanding the two-minute games with them is important, the last two minutes of each quarter,” J-Kidd said. “That’s where they make a move and in the end of the first, going into the second, that’s when they made the move and took control of the game.”
Milwaukee led after the first quarter by two points, but the Warriors answered with 36 in the second and limited the Bucks to only 15.
“They have guys that are capable of making shots and they made some shots there in that second quarter,” Kidd said. “We got frustrated because we weren’t making shots and that’s not who we are. We rely on our defense if we’re not scoring and that’s where it got away from us. We played a lot better in that second half but that second quarter killed us.”
The Warriors outscored the Bucks in the third and fourth quarter, sending J-Kidd’s crew on its way with a 117-92 loss.
Rookie Thon Maker continues to garner attention from his coach for his productive play these last few weeks. Saturday night he finished with nine points and five rebounds.
“He was good. He had a good night,” Jason said. “He gave us some energy, he was good on defense and so understanding that he played at a very high level, we just couldn’t get anybody to go with him. He’s improving. He’s getting better each time he takes the floor. He’s not out there for a long time but today I thought he got us off to a really good start.”
Up next Milwaukee’s west coast trip continues on Tuesday night against the Portland Trail Blazers.
