grind grind grind grind grind grind grind grind grind grind grind grind
The Bucks are winners of six of their last seven after squeaking by the Boston Celtics tonight in a 96-93 victory, their fourth straight win at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. Brandon Knight (26p/5a/2to on 9/17 fg, 4/8 threes) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (14p/11r/5a/2b) once again led the way for Jason KIdd's club, which improved to 28-23 with the win.
Though the Bucks appeared to have control for most of the game, the Celtics packed a few punches throughout the game. The lead swung back and forth for most of the first half, with the lead alternating about 10 times. At the start of the second half, the Bucks marched out to a more commanding lead, but again saw their work get chipped away at as the Celtics fought their way back into the game.
Jared Sullinger was a bruising force in the paint, but finished with "only" 17p/7r. Marcus Thornton's strong second half let him finish with 14 points and four other Celtics scored in double figures, but all of that just wasn't enough to get over the top.
The Bucks again saw a fourth quarter lead shrink as they went on a dry spell, but got big time relief when John Henson hit a hook shot with 2:31 left. Milwaukee then got an even more clutch basket from Brandon Knight, who danced away from his defender and knock down the jumper that put the Bucks up 96-93 with 6.7 seconds left.
The Celtics were unable to connect on their final play, and the Bucks fans -- who again came out in droves to support their team -- went home happy.
Observations/Stats/Highlights:
-- Giannis followed up his back-to-back career-high performances with a solid 14p/11r/5a/2b performance. It was his fourth double-double in the last seven games. He also obliterated an Evan Turner layup in transition.
Giannis was also 6-10 from the field tonight, upping his shooting percentage in the last three games to 68 percent (27-40). We were curious if Giannis would reveal his secret to improved shooting after the game, and he didn't disappoint. His answer? It's his shooting sleeve. It's changed him. He's the best.
-- Brandon Knight's final bucket gave him 26 for the game to go along with five assists and four rebounds. Knight came out sizzling from the start, drilling four threes en route to 18 points in the first half. In between his strong start and finish he moved the ball relatively well -- his 12 straight games with 5+ assists is the fifth-longest active streak in the league -- and avoided costly mistakes. All in all, a very solid performance with a clutch finish.
-- Though their last two home games have been close, the victories have pushed the Bucks record against sub-.500 teams this year to 20-6. That is what we like to call taking care of business.
-- I'm not sure how much this actually matters, but the Bucks are 6-1 in games that John Henson starts. Additionally, Henson has blocked 2.7 shots a game in those starts. Jason Kidd will have an interesting decision to make when Zaza Pachulia returns to the rotation, which Kidd hopes will happen at some point in the next week.
-- The Bucks have two more games before the All-Star Break, both winnable home contests against the Brooklyn Nets and Sacramento Kings. Should Milwaukee come away victorious in both, they will be seven games over .500 at 30-23. Unexpected, ridiculous...whatever you want to call it, we're running out of adjectives for the 14/15 Bucks.