Milwaukee unable to overcome turnovers
In a game defined by turnovers and inconsistent scoring, the Milwaukee Bucks crumbled at home against the Golden State Warriors, 125-111.
Read our full summary of the game here and catch a six-minute audio recap on the Bucks+ podcast Bucks In Six Minutes below.
What Did We Learn?
This was one where the Bucks truly missed Giannis. I mentioned it in the Rapid Recap, but when you’re going up against an opposing team that boasts a scoring threat as lethal as Stephen Curry, you’re going to need to produce buckets. While Damian Lillard was magnificent in that regard (38 points on 12/20 shooting), lacking that offensive firepower from other angles did the Bucks in. Taurean Prince was valiant with his 19 points, but it simply wasn’t enough. The Bucks will hope they don’t have similar outings prior to the All-Star break.
Three Observations
Turnovers told a bad story for the Bucks.
All night long, the Warriors were not only limiting the Bucks’ 3-point shooting chances, but playing stifling defense that resulted in the ball being coughed up. Golden State forced 20 Milwaukee turnovers on the night. The Bucks also conceded 31 points off those turnovers. As powerful as Dame was on offense, the Warriors frustrated him all game long, as he turned the rock over ten times. There was a stretch late in this one where Milwaukee was trying to land a final blow to prevent a knockout, but the Warriors kept making things difficult and kept the game out of reach.
Pat Connaughton made an appearance in the third quarter and it took the air out of the building.
As soon as Milwaukee made a run, it seemed to disappear. That also seemed to coincide with Doc Rivers playing Pat Connaughton. Right as he entered the game, the Warriors directed their whole offense to go at him — and they succeeded. It just looked like PC was playing in slow motion, lagging behind the action and committing unnecessary actions. Connaughton played just four minutes but quickly resulted in a -7 RPM. I get the Bucks are thin at the moment and are finding their footing, but man, the tide really turned against them during those minutes.
Quinten Post had himself a night.
If you had to guess the name of the player who’d ultimately deliver the kill shot to the Bucks, I doubt many of you would say Quinten Post. He’d hit not one, but multiple clutch shots that helped seal the deal for Golden State. Off the bench, he played 15 minutes. In that action, he tallied 13 points and went 3⁄4 from downtown. Two of those threes forced Doc Rivers to call a timeout. The one that occurred halfway through the fourth quarter was the maddest I may have ever seen Doc during his time in Milwaukee.
Bonus Bucks Bits
- Kevin Porter Jr. made his debut for the Bucks in this one. In ten minutes of action, he went 1/1 from the floor for two points while also snagging a rebound and handing out two assists. Doc mentioned that he’s going to get some run in Minnesota as well.
- Steph reached a season-high-tying 38 points in this one. His six threes helped serve up his 12th 30-point game of the season. Typically, he doesn’t shine in games in Milwaukee, but he sure did in this one.
- Just like he’d do in Miami, Jimmy Butler caused some problems for the Bucks. He scored 20 points, hauled in nine rebounds, and facilitated six assists.
- Taurean Prince made a season-high five threes last night en route to scoring 19 points, the second-most he’s scored in a game this season. It’s the first time he’s made 5+ threes in a game since Dec. 25, 2023, and it’s his 27th career game with 5+ 3FGM.
- Kyle Kuzma logged his first 20-point performance with the Bucks in this one, scoring 21 points on 66.7% shooting (6-9) from the field. It’s his 12th 20-point performance of the season overall and just his fourth game this season shooting at least 60% from the field.
Up Next
The Bucks are now off until tomorrow night, which is when they’ll head to Minneapolis to take on the Minnesota Timberwolves. You can catch the action at 7 p.m. CST on FanDuel Sports Network Wisconsin or stream it on our Playback and YouTube channels.