The Bucks took the court tonight against the Brooklyn Nets hoping for their first win of the season. In Milwaukee’s second home game, we got our first real look at Tony Snell, the Bucks’ late postseason acquisition. Also, Brook Lopez was a pre-game scratch, which boded well for the Bucks according to my preview.
The starting lineup for the Bucks was:
Matthew Dellavedova
Tony Snell
Giannis Antetokounmpo
Jabari Parker
Miles Plumlee
The Nets’ starters were:
Jeremy Lin
Bojan Bogdanovic
Trevor Booker
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson
Justin Hamilton
Giannis Antetokounmpo started the game off with a monster dunk, and it really set the tone for the Bucks early. He had 6 points midway through the quarter, but it wasn’t until Rashad Vaughn hit a big three to put the Bucks up 15-8 when they really started to build a lead. The Bucks didn’t lead by fewer than 6 points the rest of the quarter as they closed out the first with a 24-18 lead. It was a great start for Milwaukee, much better than their first time out against the Hornets.
The Nets started to close the gap in the second quarter with a 10-3 run, and Brooklyn took their first lead in the game with nine minutes left on a Jeremy Lin offensive rebound and layup. Tony Snell broke this run with a silky-smooth jumper, and the teams basically traded baskets (including another thunderous Giannis dunk, off a Delly feed) the rest of the quarter. The Bucks were able to gain a slight edge, though, as they went into the locker room with a solid 46-41 lead at halftime.
Jeremy Lin and Matthew Dellavedova traded floaters to open the second half, but the Nets took an early lead. Tony Snell put a stop that to by starting a 9-0 run which was capped by yet another great Giannis dunk. Rashad Vaughn hit consecutive 3s to make it a 15-3 run, but the Nets responded with consecutive threes of their own. Although the Nets kept the Bucks from blowing it wide open, Milwaukee went into the final quarter with an 80-73 lead.
To start the fourth quarter, Jeremy Lin opened up the scoring once again with a layup, and the Nets had a 7-0 run just a little later to help chip away at the Bucks’ lead early. From then, the game turned into a hell of a contest, with the teams staying close all quarter, as evidenced by the 108-108 tie going into Milwaukee’s last possession. As the seconds waned, Jabari Parker set up for a final drive, but as he put his shot up with about three seconds left, it was a bit too strong and popped out… only to be popped right back in by John Henson, who gave it just enough touch to fall into the basket. The Bucks finished the game out with a thrilling 110-108 win on the strength of Henson’s positioning.
Three Big Things
Giannis Antetokounmpo and Tony Snell – Giannis had a much bigger game than Tony Snell, but they were both crucial in keeping the Nets at bay all night. Every time the Nets started to go on nice runs or threaten for a lead (or a bigger lead), one of these two would make a shot and stifle Brooklyn’s momentum. I don’t mean to overshadow Giannis’s huge game though, and let’s acknowledge the fact that he had 21 points on 10/18 shooting and 11 rebounds for his first double-double of the season. He also had 4 turnovers, but I suppose it could be worse. Snell only had 6 points on 3/7 shooting, but his 4 fouls kept him from a nicer statline.
Trevor Booker, Luis Scola, Jeremy Lin and Bojan Bogdanovic – Trevor Booker had a double-double of his own with 14 points and 14 rebounds, as did Lin with 12 points and 10 assists. These other two guys added near double-doubles, as Luis Scola had 14 points and 8 rebounds. It was Bogdanovic, though, who made the biggest impact on the scoresheet with 26 points and 8 rebounds, including a huge game-tying three with just a few seconds left, though this was shortly erased by Henson’s effort.
Rashad Vaughn – On the day the Bucks exercised Vaughn’s option, the sophomore had an incredible game, particularly from downtown. His 22 points were a career high, and he shot an excellent 6/12 from beyond the arc. If Vaughn keeps shooting like this, he will easily be Milwaukee’s best 3-point shooting option, and can carve out a very nice space for himself on this team (even if he doesn’t play quite this lights-out all season).
Plus/Minus Hero
Naturally, Giannis Antetokounmpo snatches his first plus/minus hero honors of this young season with +16, followed very closely by Vaughn and Parker’s +15s and perennial contender Greg Monroe’s +15. I’ve already discussed Giannis’s big stats, but I should also point out that every time you looked up tonight, Giannis was putting away another loud dunk. It can’t be very motivating for an opposing team to have to constantly deal with that.
Well, the Bucks certainly had to work for their first win of the season, but they have to feel good after winning in such an exciting fashion, all while avoiding the extra stress of overtime. Despite the Nets’ 108 points, Milwaukee played better defensively than they did in the first game, and they easily had a better offensive showing that they did the first time out too. Lucky for Bucks fans, you only have to wait until tomorrow at 5:00 PM CT to see this team in action again at Detroit.