Milwaukee Bucks’ Grades And Reactions in 101-95 Loss to San Antonio Spurs
Jan 25, 2015; San Antonio, TX, USA; San Antonio Spurs point guard Tony Parker (9) shoots the ball past Milwaukee Bucks point guard Jerryd Bayless (19) during the first half at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
Reactions: The Bad
The refereeing was simply awful for the entire game. San Antonio took 30 free throws to Milwaukee’s 13, benefiting from phantom calls against
solid
Buck’s defense while swallowing their whistles on blatant Spurs’ fouls. The most egregious non-call came on a Giannis Antetokounmpo fast break dunk attempt against Boris Diaw late in the fourth quarter. Diaw
clearly
swiped Giannis’ forearm, causing the ball to break free from his grip. The game summary remembers the play simply as “Giannis Antetokounmpo Misses”. Here’s a brief Twitter reaction:
simply garbage defense by boris on that giannis dunk attempt. shocked they didn't call that foul.
— Aaron McGuire (@docrostov) January 26, 2015
How is that not a foul on Giannis' dunk attempt?!! Quit playing favorites @NBA
— Alex Christman (@merrychristman1) January 26, 2015
John Henson left the game in the fourth quarter after falling awkwardly on his left foot. Wanting to keep Zaza Pachulia fresh for the late fourth quarter Kidd played Kenyon Martin. The following vine isn’t meant to single out Martin, but rather the Buck’s pitiful low post presence with no center on the court. In other words: Sanders can’t return soon enough.
- You simply cannot turn the ball over 21 times against the defending champions on the road and expect to win. Had the Bucks not turned it over eight times in the third quarter, a quarter the Spurs won 22-12, the Bucks may have won the game. The sloppy play must stop–and it starts with Brandon Knight. His three turnovers to end the first quarter crushed an opportunity for Milwaukee to surge far ahead.
Next: Grades: Starters