Milwaukee Bucks: Takeaways From Win Over Chicago Bulls

Cruising to Victory

Heading into a part of the schedule packed with quirky home and home matchups, there’s been a lot of talk about the impact that could have on the Bucks. It’s said to be notoriously difficult to beat the same team twice in a week in the NBA, and that’s not to mention how the Bucks have struggled somewhat on back-to-backs this season.

That was certainly something Milwaukee wanted to put right in this game, and they did. The Bucks came out with a 34-point opening quarter while the Bulls were still stuck in the starting blocks, and that was really the end of the game from there.

Giannis Antetokounmpo virtually said as much in conversation with Charles Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel post-game.

"“Our intensity was really high, even higher than last night,” Antetokounmpo said. “We wanted to play hard in the first couple minutes and make them basically stop playing. I think we did it and we knew we had the game.”"

What’s particularly important about this is the Bucks were able to manage the game from the end of the first onwards. Antetokounmpo and Parker were among those who played very well, but mostly looked like they were playing within themselves throughout the game.

Part of what has made the Golden State Warriors so good in recent seasons is that they only need to burst into life once, and then they’ll be able to manage their way to victory. Considering some of the late game collapses we’ve seen from the Bucks of late, it was nice to see them close out a game with their foot off the gas a little in the final 36 minutes.