Suns show fight but fall short as Bucks hang on in Milwaukee

DOUG HALLER

MILWAUKEE – After the second miss Sunday, Marquese Chriss back-pedaled. The rookie forward chewed on his mouth guard. He slapped hands with teammate T.J. Warren. A section of Bucks fans chanted his name, “Marquese! Marquese!”

Down one with 30 seconds left, Chriss missed two free throws, a key moment in Milwaukee’s 100-96 win over the Suns in front of 16,051 at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

Two nights earlier in Chicago, guard Devin Booker, with the Suns down two, was fouled on a 3-point attempt. Booker made two, but missed the third. The Suns lost in overtime.

Chriss suffered a similar experience against the Bucks.

“It’s important for Book to have that opportunity against Chicago. It was important for ‘Quese tonight,” Suns coach Earl Watson said. “Did we want the win? Yes. We want our young talent to blossom and the only way that can happen is through experience.”

As the losses pile – Phoenix dropped to 18-41 – this is the silver lining for the Suns. For better or worse, their young players are learning ahead of schedule. In the Chicago loss, getting stops was the problem. This time, it wasn’t as much. Trailing 97-88 with 2 minutes, 24 seconds to go, the Suns scored eight in a row. After a slow start because of foul trouble, Chriss scored six of those points, two coming on a one-handed alley-oop that he slammed off the back of the rim, only to watch it fall back through.

After another stop, Chriss and the Suns were off in transition again. This time, trailing 97-96, he was fouled.

“I could’ve made them. I should’ve made them,” Chriss said. “The ball just didn’t go down. You can only learn from those types of situations.”

After a timeout, Milwaukee guard Tony Snell buried a corner 3 with 8.3 seconds left, putting the game out of reach. Of their last three losses, the Suns have had chances to win in the final minute of regulation, only to fall short.

“We’re getting the feel for what it takes to close out games like this,” said point guard Eric Bledsoe, who had 11 points, nine assists and five turnovers.

Without P.J. Tucker – traded to Toronto last week – the Suns had no one suited to slow Giannis Antetokounmpo. (Actually, even with Tucker, they had no one to slow him. Pretty much, no one does.) The versatile 6-11 forward had 28 points, eight rebounds and six assists. But the difference maker was Malcolm Brogdon.

The rookie point guard – drafted in last year’s second round – scored 11 of his 15 points in the third quarter, helping the Bucks erase a nine-point deficit. Brogdon hit a 21-foot jump shot and scored in the lane. Then he found Greg Monroe and Antetokounmpo for easy shots. The Bucks hit 12 of 16 from the field, outscoring the Suns 35-26 in the third quarter.

“Brogdon changed the game,” Watson said. “The entire second half, he made the right decision, the right pass. Very calm, great demeanor. That’s a great steal for them.”

Warren led the Suns with 23 points, hitting 11 of 14 from the field. Alan Williams added 17 points and 15 rebounds off the bench, his second consecutive productive outing. Booker added 15 points.

Milwaukee (26-31) shot 56.4 percent in the second half.

The first half featured five technical fouls. In the first quarter, Antetokounmpo and Chriss got tangled near the baseline. For the most part, this was just one athletic player (Chriss) getting into another athletic player’s way (Antetokounmpo.) But Antetokounmpo took exception and delivered a one-arm shove to Chriss as he got off the floor.

Later in the first half, Bledsoe and Bucks coach Jason Kidd received double technical fouls for exchanging words. A minute later, Milwaukee’s Khris Middleton tried to drive on Booker. The Suns guard held his ground and Middleton held his, which led to a lot of bodies in a small area where nothing really was happening. The officials called time to review the play, ultimately giving both players technical fouls. During the break, Kidd and Bledsoe exchanged more words.

“Heat of the moment,” Bledsoe said. “Nothing personal.”

Watson again applauded his team’s toughness, togetherness and confidence. The Suns, young as they are, do not back down.

“The fight is always there,” Watson said. “We just have to learn how to win.” Malcolm Brogdon finished with