February 23, 2013; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic guard Beno Udrih (19) is defended by Cleveland Cavaliers center Tyler Zeller (40) at Amway Center. The Magic lost 118-94. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Griffith-USA TODAY Sports

It didn’t take long for former Bucks Beno Udrih to vent his unhappiness with his stint in Milwaukee.

Less than a week after being sent to Orlando in a trade that brought J.J. Redick to Milwaukee, Udrih lashed out.  He didn’t care for Scott Skiles — or his approach to personnel.  He didn’t relish his backup role in Milwaukee.  He didn’t like sitting behind Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings.  He wanted more minutes.

Udrih wasn’t terribly shy about stating his displeasure before, but the trade to Orlando unleashed a torrent of unabashed Bucks bashing.

Beno Udrih: “I’ve only been here three days and I already feel more at home than I did in Milwaukee.” instagr.am/p/WKd-jcOzUf/

— Orlando Magic (@Orlando_Magic) February 25, 2013

Then Beno elaborated on the way he felt during his time in Milwaukee.

It was just a bad situation there. I’m a professional and I’m a man and I like to be told what they expect from me, so in Milwaukee that never happened. In Milwaukee, they would say we know that we’ve got to play you a little more, but it never happened. And when I did get in the game I didn’t know what they wanted me to do. I was just trying to find myself (with the Bucks), but I never did.

The problem here doesn’t lie in the singular fact that Beno Udrih was unhappy.  It is easier, though, to be bothered by the overall trend.  Stephen Jackson obviously wanted out.  Andrew Bogut said that he enjoyed California “100 times better than Milwaukee”, and even if that quote was meant to reflect his feelings on the climate and not the basketball team, he took a fair number of post-trade potshots at the organization too.

Mar 3, 2012; Atlanta, GA, USA; Milwaukee Bucks small forward Carlos Delfino (10), point guard Brandon Jennings (3) ad point guard Beno Udrih (19) exit the floor after being defeated by the Atlanta Hawks at Philips Arena. The Hawks won 99-94. Mandatory Credit: Paul Abell-USA TODAY Sports

It was just not a good situation for me there (in Milwaukee). They had basically two guards – Brandon and Monta and those two guys were playing 40 minutes a game. So it’s not possible for me to get in and do what I do – move the ball around and get us in the offense. It was not a good situation for me and I just had to get out of there. I think it was the most frustrating time of my career, so I was ready (for a trade).

The Orlando organization has a few familiar faces for Udrih from his time in San Antonio.  Magic head coach Jacques Vaughn and Udrih played together on the 2006-07 Spurs.  Back in 2004, when San Antonio drafted Beno, a 22-year-old Spurs intern drove him around to look for apartments.  That intern was Rob Hennigan, now Orlando’s general manager.

The Magic and Bucks play twice more this season, starting with a St. Patrick’s Day Sunday matinee in Milwaukee.

Add this photo to the list of ‘Things That Should Never Ever Happen’. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

The Pistons caught the Bucks feeling good about a modest win streak and, for the second time in a month, cut it short.

Milwaukee made it to halftime with an eight-point lead, but the Detroit Pistons flattened the Bucks by outscoring them in the third quarter by a 33-11 margin.  It was every bit as ugly as it sounds.

Greg Monroe and Brandon Knight had 26 and 20 points, respectively, for the Pistons, while Monroe and Andre Drummond had 11 rebounds each.  Drummond also had four blocks in just 17 minutes.

Knight outplayed Brandon Jennings.  Whatever good feelings Jennings had going after the last two wins are probably lost now.  Let’s move on.

Beno Udrih propelled the Bucks to that halftime lead with an 13-point second quarter, hitting all six of his shots.  He did it the usual Beno way with a series of pullups and duck-unders after spin moves.

The Bucks made just one of 15 three-point shots in the game, but to be honest, not many of those 15 were good looks.  Poor ball movement doomed the Bucks all night long.

Monta Ellis tried gamely to impact the game.  On one sequence, he dove to the floor to help the Bucks corral a loose ball.  He used a spin move on the subsequent possession and lost the ball out of bounds while trying to turn on an unsupportive ankle.

Ellis had 13 points on 12 shots, to go with five assists and a steal.

When Jim Boylan went to his bench for a spark to begin the fourth quarter, he unshelved Drew Gooden and paired him with John Henson.  That duo played defense in a way that sparked the Pistons.  Not long after, Henson came out for Samuel Dalembert (also a defensive dud in this game), and Boylan emptied the rest of his bench for garbage minutes.

Ersan’s shot chart: (from ESPN.com)

The Bucks were generating a ton of open looks for Ersan Ilyasova in the first quarter and he was having none of it.

Milwaukee used a lot of drive-and-kick action to spot Ersan those first-quarter jumpers. He shot them without the hesitation that strangled him in November, but they just didn’t go in.

On a night with subpar ball movement, this action was adequate but unrewarding.

In a way, Milwaukee’s first-half lead didn’t feel “big enough” — as if they had outplayed the Pistons by more than eight points, but just didn’t have the lead to show for it. When Detroit caught fire in the third quarter, these missed shots bit them in the butt.
The Bucks play at noon Sunday in Toronto.

A few tweets

I think Brandon Jennings just airballed a 4-foot scoop shot. I also think it’s not the first time I’ve seen him do it.

— Steven von Horn (@StevevonHorn) January 12, 2013

Pistons just won a 99-possession game. They’ve been terrible in up-tempo games this year, so that’s a good sign.

— Dave Hogg (@Stareagle) January 12, 2013

In the final seconds, Villanueva tried to throw a lob dunk off the glass to Drummond. Lawrence Frank was so mad he sprinted on the court.

— Andrew Gruman (@AndrewGruman) January 12, 2013