In their final game before the All-Star break, the Milwaukee Bucks notched a big win against the Memphis Grizzlies Thursday night.
It was not a pretty 48 minutes of action for the Bucks, but they fought until the final buzzer and came out on top with a 112-111 victory to close out the first portion of the season. Giannis Antetokounmpo paved the way as he put together another MVP-caliber performance with 26 points, 11 rebounds, and eight rebounds to lead Milwaukee to their 22nd win of the season.
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Sitting at 22-14 heading into the break, there is certainly still work to be done for the Bucks in their quest for an NBA championship.
This team is still working through the process of making the necessary adjustments on a nightly basis, and last night’s fourth quarter evidenced the adversity they will have to endure to become a better team on the biggest stage.
With that being said, here are three takeaways from Milwaukee’s gutsy win over Memphis in last night’s thrilling action.
First takeaway from win over Memphis Grizzlies — Milwaukee Bucks go cold from deep in the second half
Holding a 61-51 lead at halftime, the Bucks likely felt good about the final 24 minutes ahead coming out of the tunnel.
Everything was relatively working in their favor throughout the first two periods, but that changed as they came out in the second half ice cold from behind the arc. Over the final two quarters, the Bucks could not buy a bucket from long range by missing their first 13 3-point attempts over the second half.
Unable to hit a three, Milwaukee’s double-digit lead vanished, and the Grizzlies asserted themselves in the driver’s seat for a vast majority of the fourth quarter with a consistent lead.
Finally, Pat Connaughton broke the spell with 39.1 seconds left in the game by knocking down Milwaukee’s first triple of the half. It was one the Bucks desperately needed to fall too, as it gave them a 108-107 lead to help notch their eventual victory.
Including his clutch triple to take the lead late, Connaughton had an impactful game for the Bucks off the bench and finished with an impressive 15 points on the night. Connaughton certainly deserves credit for knocking down that triple late, but the biggest shot in the game undoubtedly came just moments later from his teammate to nearly seal the deal.
Second takeaway from 112-111 win over Memphis Grizzlies — Jrue Holiday saves the day for the Milwaukee Bucks
In his third game back with the Bucks after a lengthy bout with COVID-19, point guard Jrue Holiday hit his biggest shot as a member of the franchise to date.
With Milwaukee trailing by one point in the closing seconds without a timeout, Donte DiVincenzo quickly inbounded the ball to Holiday, who took it upcourt and nailed the baseline jumper to put Milwaukee back on top. As Grizzlies’ rookie Desmond Bane missed the 3-pointer to win the game, Holiday’s clutch jumper elevated the Bucks to victory.
The team surely missed the guard during his time away from the team, and he continues to show his substantial impact on this group despite not being fully up to speed just yet.
Coming off the bench for the third consecutive game, Holiday is still shaking off the rust after his 10 game absence, and understandably so. His minutes have been tightly monitored in this stretch, and although he played just over 22-and-a-half last night, he made them all count.
The guard finished with 15 points, shooting 6-of-14 from the floor, including 1-of-3 from distance. Chipping in two rebounds, three assists, and two steals, Holiday had a solid game for the Bucks in this one, but he will only continue getting better as he gets more integrated into the lineup.
Time will tell if he can get back up to speed over the All-Star break, but there is no denying that he looked fantastic on the jumper to put the Bucks up by one late.
Third takeaway from win over Memphis Grizzlies — Milwaukee Bucks battle it out down low with their opponent
The Bucks and Grizzlies are two teams that are well-equipped to put points on the board in the post, and that was on full display Thursday night.
With Milwaukee’s previously mentioned 3-point slump taking over the team in the second half, the Bucks had to look to score elsewhere. Shooting 10-of-34 from deep, they found much more success down low, managing to put up an astounding 60 points in the paint, far above their typical average of 47.5 per game.
Meanwhile, Memphis entered this game as the best post scoring team in the association, and they showcased why as they scored at will against Milwaukee. The Grizzlies managed to tack a whopping 54 points on the board courtesy of points scored down low, displaying their dominance in that area.
Of course, it did not help that they had a worse shooting night than the Bucks, managing to shoot just 8-of-34 from deep in the contest. Milwaukee’s paint defense has typically been the strongest part of their regime in the Mike Budenholzer era, but that was not the case last night.
Nevertheless, they were able to pull out the win, and the team will head into the All-Star break on a much-needed high-note. The Milwaukee Bucks will resume the second half of the season next Thursday with a rematch against the New York Knicks.
In the meantime, you can catch Giannis Antetokounmpo in the All-Star game playing for Team LeBron this Sunday at 7:00 CST on TNT.