Milwaukee Bucks Grades And Reactions in 102-93 Loss to Golden State Warriors

Mar 4, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) shoots a three point basket against the Milwaukee Bucks during the fourth quarter at Oracle Arena. The Golden State Warriors defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 102-93. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

Things were going so well for so long against the Warriors on Wednesday night. The Bucks played tough, smart basketball and even took a seven point lead early in the second half, 60-53, the culmination of an 18-0 run spanning two halves. But the Warriors have a legitimate MVP candidate while the Bucks have up-and-comers.

Stephen Curry put the game out of reach in the fourth quarter with back-to-back to back threes that gave the Warriors an 85-75 lead. The Bucks battled resiliently against the league’s best team–but came up short 102-93.

The loss sealed the Bucks winless (0-4) road trip and sent them to 32-29. The Bucks still have a four and a half game lead over the Charlotte Hornets for the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference, but with the Washington Warriors vulnerable the Bucks failed to make a move on the fifth seed. Perhaps it’s for the best as the six versus three match-up would give the Bucks their best shot at advancing against the Raptors.

There’s no shame in losing to the Warriors on the road. None at all. Especially when you look at how well the Bucks played for the majority of the night. They played with passion, they battled for rebounds, and they hustled in picking up fallen players. We haven’t seen that since the Brandon Knight era. Perhaps, despite losing, this could be the game that helps the Bucks regain their mojo.

Let’s go back to January 25th against the San Antonio Spurs. The Bucks played a similarly strong game, but were overcome by better experience and talent. They lost, sure, but were competitive on the road against the defending champions. The Bucks learned something important about themselves that night–something they’ve forgotten recently. They have the potential to be really, really good. The Bucks proceeded to win nine out of the next ten games.

Could this be a similar moral victory for the Bucks? We can only hope. What’s undeniable is that the Bucks played stride for stride with the league’s best team for 40 minutes.

Continue reading for our Milwaukee Bucks grades and reactions in their 102-93 loss the the Golden State Warriors.

Next: Reactions: The Good