Just Another Win (Yeah, Right): Bucks 86 – Celtics 84

March 9, 2010

Video Courtesy of CelticsHub.com (They have more! Go check it out!)

Recap/Box Score

He flew out at the Celtics best player, his arm extended far as it could go.  Another night full of blocked shots, his arms must have looked like stop signs to the Celtics.  Every time they ventured into the lane he awaited, ready to throw one of his big, red, horizontal shaped hands at them with the same message warning them to cease.

But he could not get to this one.  The crafty Celtic veteran Paul Pierce faded just far enough back to launch his shot just out of the reach of the Bucks defensive anchor, who’d roamed out to challenge the Celtics tying attempt.  The ball sailed through the air; surely many in the Bradley Center were having Dirk Nowitzki and Kobe Bryant flashbacks as if Tuesday’s game were nothing more than a bad horror movie.  We’d seen this killer before in his other shapes, would he do it again?

And then the final shot rimmed out.  Andrew Bogut could breathe a sigh of relief.  Another Herculean effort of his would not go to waste and the Bucks would not bow out at the buzzer yet again.

Bogut finished Tuesday with 25 points (10-18 FG 5-5 FT), 17 rebounds and four blocked shots to lead the Bucks over the Celtics 86-84 in a game that gave the home crowd and, more importantly, the home team a little taste of the playoffs in early March.  From scoring the Bucks first four points, to helping to deny the Celtics of their possible last two, Bogut did it all for the Bucks.  The typically strong defender Kendrick Perkins did his best to muscle Bogut out of the lane and challenge his shots, only to see the Aussie drop in one running hook and spin after the next.  Especially pleasing for Bucks fans were the moments when Bogut was truly aggressive.

I love seeing Bogut drop in hooks as much as the next person, but it can leave him out of position for rebounds and keep him from getting to the line.  That’s why it was so delightful to see Bogut grab a rebound for a put back dunk or cram in a top ten nominee on Glen Davis.  Defensively Bogut is the total package and offensively he has as good a finesse game around the hoop as any big man in the league.  At times I’ve thought he lacked killer instinct, nasty demeanor and a midrange game.  Tonight?  Well, he missed a 15-footer that would have put it away with a minute to go, but I can live with that — especially if I keep seeing the instinct and the nasty that was on display Tuesday. Read More »

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Sure, Lebron Was Out, but Still, It’s a Win: Bucks 92 – Cavs 85

March 7, 2010

Recap/Box Score

Fortunately, the NBA doesn’t decide standings with a poll that measures the strength of each win.

No, in the NBA, every win, regardless of who it’s over, the margin of victory or the location of the game, counts just the same.  So if anyone tells you that the Bucks wins over teams missing their star players (the Hornets without Chris Paul, the Heat without Dwyane Wade and now the Cavs without Lebron James) don’t mean anything, you can simply point to the Bucks current position in sixth in the Eastern Conference and inform them of their error.

A Cavs team sans James, Shaquille O’Neal and Zydrunas Illgauskas is a significantly weaker opponent than one with those three, or any of them for that matter.  In two weeks, Shaq will still be out, but James will surely be back in the lineup, Illgauskas will be back and the Cavs will again be a force to be reckoned with.  But that’s not important today.  What’s important right now is that the Bucks won another game and even better, it’s one that not many people had penciled in a day or two ago.  It’s important the Bucks are now two games up on Chicago for the sixth seed, it’s important the sold out Bradley Center had plenty of reason to cheer all night long Saturday and, most of all, it’s important that Brandon Jennings’ mojo finally returned.

Ben Gordon :: Trendsetter :: Brit

Ben Gordon :: Trendsetter :: Brit

For just the third time since February 1 (17 games), Jennings topped 40% shooting, finishing 6-14 from the field and 5-7 from behind the arc.  Jennings finished with 25 points and had a season high number of “three-point monocles.”  Popularized in last year’s playoffs by Ben Gordon, the “three-point monocle” is an especially braggadocios celebration of a three-point shot.  Seeing Jennings break it out was especially joyful for me for a number of reasons.  First, it’s good to see Jennings having fun out on the court again, especially in light of his recent comments about packing in his shot for a while.  Second, I just love the trey monocle.  Jennings explanation:

I did a little mocking, a little dancing for (Lebron). Hopefully (Lebron) caught that, I think it got his attention.

That being said, it would have been nice to see just where the Bucks measure up against the NBA’s best team, especially with Jennings having it going. Read More »

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Game 60 and 61 Previews: Bucks vs/at Wizards

March 3, 2010

Milwaukee Bucks (Scott Skiles) 30-29

Vs. (and then At)

Washington Wizards (Flip Saunders) 21-36

Dates: 3/3/2010 & 3/5/2010

Times: 7:00 (CST) & 6:00 (CST)

TV: FS Wisconsin & None

Matchups

Point Guard

Brandon Jennings vs. Randy Foye

A lot has changed since the last time these teams met.  Gone is Gilbert Arenas.  You may have heard about him, he had some problems, a gun was involved.  In as the starter at the point is Randy Foye, an off-season pickup last June, sure to help turn things around for the Wizards in their quest to crack the top four or at least make the playoffs this year.  The best laid plans, right?  Foye’s game is more off ball scorer than ball distributor and he’s been forced back into the role he struggled with his first few years in the league.  Foye had a lot of success in the Wizards last trip to Milwaukee, particularly when Jennings was in the game defending him.  I’d think the Wizards haven’t forgotten this and will allow him to go at Jennings from the get-go in Wednesday’s game.

Advantage: Bucks Read More »

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Wade-less Heat No Match for Bucks: Bucks 94 – Heat 71

February 27, 2010

Recap/Box Score

Most Bucks fans are unabashed Brandon Jennings apologists.  They see the missed shots, they see the low field goal percentage at the rim and they see occasionally questionable shot selection and it doesn’t bother them.  Aside from having someone to finally hitch the bandwagon to after years of suffering, there is a valid reason that Bucks fans have enjoyed watching Jennings.

He controls the game like someone twice his age.

Sometimes that’s trouble, but more often than not, he takes care of the ball and makes the right decisions.  All year long, Coach Skiles has talked about Jennings’ low turnovers and his poise for someone his age, but it wasn’t often reflected in his assist numbers.  There are a few reasons for this, poor shooting, players holding the ball too long and Andrew Bogut’s slow post up game.  So while the numbers don’t necessarily say Jennings has been a very good point guard, he has.

And the numbers were unusually kind to him in the Bucks Saturday afternoon blowout of the Heat in Miami.  11 points (4-10 FG 1-3 3FG), eight assists and five rebounds without committing a turnover, but Jennings has been clear that only one number means anything to him: 30.  As in 30 wins with just 28 losses.

Via Jennings Twitter:

My coach told me, I don’t get paid to play. I get Paid to WIN……………….!!! I like that, and I respect that. Read More »

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Game 57 Preview: Bucks at Pacers

February 25, 2010

Milwaukee Bucks (Scott Skiles) 28-28

at

Indiana Pacers (Jim O’Brien) 19-38

Larry Legend has been Lotto Larry for a few years in Indy now.

Larry Legend has been Lotto Larry for a few years in Indy now.

Date: 2/25/2010

Time: 6:00 (CST)

TV: FS Wisconsin

Matchups

Point Guard

Brandon Jennings vs. Earl Watson

Jennings numbers continue to look pedestrian, but his impact is evident in the success his teammates are having.  Five Bucks scored in double figures Wednesday night and three more scored nine points.  If a team doesn’t have a good point guard, it’s difficult to get that kind of even distribution, even in a blowout.  Jennings always keeps the offense running smooth and didn’t record a turnover against New Orleans.  Jennings’ usage is at 26, his assist rate is right around 30 while his turnover rate is only 12.6.  Let me take Deron Williams as an example of where Jennings is having success.  Williams’ numbers in those categories are as follows, 23.6, 42.7 and 17.2.  If just a few more times nightly, Jennings were to hit an open shooter leading to a successful three-point shot, Jennings could conceivably close in on the first two numbers while keeping his turnover number down.  He’s not all that far off from Williams and if he used a few less possessions statistically, as a point guard he’d be in the class directly below Williams.  That doesn’t say anything about his offensive struggles with shooting, which would bring his overall game down a little further.  Bottom line, Jennings has been a VERY good point guard.

Advantage: Bucks Read More »

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