Fun returns as skid hits brakes
Antetokounmpo scores 31 points
The smiles were back for the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday night.
Bucks coach Jason Kidd said before the game his team had lost the fun in their game during a five-game losing streak.
But they found it in a 127-114 victory over the Houston Rockets at the BMO Harris Bradley Center, avenging a 19-point loss in Houston last week.
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored a game-high 31 points and Jabari Parker had 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for Milwaukee (21-23). Antetokounmpo did a shimmy as he ran downcourt after hitting a three-pointer in the final minute.
Matthew Dellavedova played the floor general to perfection and had 16 points and seven assists in 31 minutes.
“Sometimes as a young team, at the halfway point you might be a little tired,” Kidd said. “Losing doesn’t help; you get a little frustrated. I thought we have to
smile. We haven’t been smiling of late and I thought our president set the tone tonight.”
Kidd referred to an encouraging message he got from Bucks President Peter Feigin.
Parker, who was benched for the first quarter in Miami on Saturday for violating a team rule, came out with a vengeance in the first half.
“He was great,” Kidd said. “I thought he set the tone from the beginning all the way to the end. Defensively, he was communicating throughout the whole game. He was coming up with some steals, rebounding the ball and starting the break.
“I thought Moose (Greg Monroe) was great. I thought our bench was better today.”
League MVP candidate James Harden led Houston (34-14) with 26 points,12 assists and nine rebounds. He nearly had a quadruple-double as he finished with 11 turnovers. Patrick Beverley had 18 points and Nene added 17 off the bench.
“We came out with the right energy,” said Monroe, who had 17 points, 10 rebounds and three steals. “Then whenever they made their run, it was just taking the punch and continuing to do what we do.
“It’s huge (to snap the streak). We want to win. We had a stretch where we weren’t playing the right way. Tonight we did a good job of getting back to the things we do well.”
Kidd inserted Miles Plumlee as the starting center in place of John Henson, and Plumlee contributed 10 points, two rebounds and one blocked shot in 20 minutes.
“I thought he was physical; I thought he finished,” Kidd said. “I thought he set the tone early by setting screens and rolling. Defensively, he changed shots. That’s what he’s done for us in the past.
“I thought it was a great build for us from the Orlando game. He stepped up big in a starting position for us tonight.” The Bucks shot 68% in the first half and led by as many as 15 points before settling for a 68-64 lead at intermission.
A three-pointer by Dellavedova gave Milwaukee a 90-84 lead but Eric Gordon answered with a triple to cut the margin to three.
The Bucks led, 93-91, entering the fourth quarter and pulled away by outscoring the Rockets, 34-23, in the final period.
“Houston can get you into a shooting contest, and we didn’t fall for it this time around,” Kidd said. “We fell for it in Houston but we took our time, we got the ball in the paint and we finished.”
Jason Terry came off the bench to give the Bucks a huge lift early in the final quarter, making two steals and scoring five points to spark an 11-0 run.
“He was fresh,” Kidd said of Terry, who did not play against Miami on Saturday. “He came up with some steals. But I thought his voice was loud for the whole game. That’s a lot to do, to be loud and engaged for over 40 games. He gave us a big lift.”
Terry finished with eight points and three steals in 15 minutes.
Monroe also had a steal that led to two Parker free throws and Tony Snell swished a three as a trailer on the break to give Milwaukee a 110-99 lead with 6:47 remaining.
“Well, they got into us,” said Houston coach Mike D’Antoni, who berated the officials in the final seconds over a no-call when Gordon attempted a three and Antetokounmpo appeared to foul him. “They’re long, athletic and they played as hard as they can play.
“They had lost five in a row, so they were desperate. They were a little bit more desperate than we were.”