Milwaukee Bucks’ Grades And Reactions in 101-95 Loss to San Antonio Spurs

Jan 25, 2015; San Antonio, TX, USA; Milwaukee Bucks shooting guard Khris Middleton (22) dunks the ball past San Antonio Spurs small forward Kawhi Leonard (2) during the second half at AT&T Center. The Spurs won 101-95. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

Reactions: The Good

When things click for the Bucks offensively it’s usually because they’re passing well. The first half saw the Bucks pass

extremely

well, with 17 of their 23 fields goals being assisted, including this beauty.

• An early second quarter sequence saw John Henson block a layup attempt, score on a lefty-hook over Tiago Splitter, find O.J. Mayo for three using a spin move nobody knew he had, grab a rebound, and score on an 8-foot lefty hook. For those not keeping count that’s: 4 points, 1 block, 1 rebound, and 1 assist in :58 seconds. I tried running his per 36 minutes stats for that virtuoso run, but my calculator disintegrated when i hit the compute button. Thanks, John Henson.

• The Bucks forced 5 Tim Duncan turnovers, 3 of which directly resulted from the Bucks denying him his pet “spin to the hoop in the paint” play. Knight, Ilyasova, and Middleton all got their paws between Duncan’s, forcing turnovers and creating easy looks for the offense. Milwaukee’s defense also denied his other pet “top of the key screen into jumper” play, with Zaza Pachulia anticipating the pass to Duncan and earning a steal.

• Jerryd Bayless stepped up for the Bucks in the fourth quarter scoring ten of his fifteen points in the final frame, keeping the Bucks afloat while the Spurs threatened to blow the game wide open. It’s a shame he missed the game tying shot with :23 left in the game, but make or miss: he deserved the opportunity to make a play in that moment.

Next: The Bad