Following a week off, the Milwaukee Bucks kicked off the second half of the season with a big win against the visiting New York Knicks Thursday night.
Just days removed from winning his first All-Star Game MVP this past Sunday, Giannis Antetokounmpo put together another MVP caliber performance against the Knicks. The Greek Freak notched his fifth triple-double of the season to pave the way for Milwaukee, totaling 24 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists in 29 minutes.
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Antetokounmpo and the four other starters finished with double-digit points in the contest, helping Milwaukee run up the scoreboard. With a 134-101 win, the Bucks were able to grab their 23rd victory of the year and even up the season series against the Knicks.
Winning by a whopping 33 points, one could not have hoped for a better start to the latter half of the season for Milwaukee after their struggles throughout the first portion. There were a handful of positives to take away from this game, and hopefully, the team can build something off this performance moving forward.
However, before the Bucks retake the court on Saturday night, here are three takeaways from their big win over the New York Knicks Thursday night.
First takeaway from win over Knicks — Milwaukee Bucks keep All-Star Julius Randle in check
Having a breakout year in New York, Julius Randle earned his first All-Star nod this season, joining Antetokounmpo among the Eastern Conference reserves last Sunday. Knowing that he would be the difference maker in this one, the Bucks did everything in their power to keep him in check from start to finish.
They were successful in doing so, as the big man had a minimal impact all night long. He scored just seven points in the contest, shooting an abysmal 3-of-12 from the floor, including 1-of-2 from deep. Randle also tallied five turnovers in the game thanks to some fantastic defense from the pestering Bucks.
For a player that typically averages around 23 points and 11 rebounds on a nightly basis, Milwaukee did a phenomenal job keeping him at bay offensively from the opening tip. Part of what helped the Bucks keep him contained was their defensive efforts in the paint and just how much they dominated in that area on both ends.
Second takeaway from win over New York Knicks — Milwaukee Bucks dominate in the post and in transition defensively
Milwaukee’s defense has been hit or miss this season, but there is no doubt that they were clicking in the win over New York.
Despite having given up 101 points as the final buzzer sounded, the Bucks allowed a measly 32 points in the paint all night, while managing to score 52 of their own. Paint defense has been Milwaukee’s calling card throughout the Mike Budenholzer era, and this game was a prime example of that.
This heavy mismatch was largely thanks to a heroic defensive performance from big man Brook Lopez, who finished with a season-high five blocked shots.
Lopez has received his share of recent criticism for his potentially obsolete fit on this roster, but he showcased just how impactful he can be for this defense in the win. Whether or not this is sustainable remains to be seen, but it was relieving to see him turn back to the clock to what fans have gotten so accustomed to seeing these last two seasons.
While Lopez and the Bucks had the paint on lock, they were just shy of perfect with their transition defense as well. The Knicks managed to score just one fastbreak point in the contest, a testament to just how well this Milwaukee team was at getting back on defense for all 48 minutes.
Third takeaway from win over Knicks — Milwaukee Bucks get a boost from Bryn Forbes and D.J. Augustin
While Milwaukee’s starting lineup provided a hefty dose of the scoring production, two players off the bench certainly stepped up as well.
The first notable contributor was Bryn Forbes, who had himself a perfect night shooting from distance by going 7-of-7 from behind the arc to finish with 21 points. Playing just under 17 and a half minutes, the guard made a sizeable impact and continued to show just how important the floor spacing he provides for this team can be.
The big night from Forbes overshadowed the contributions from backup point guard D.J. Augustin, who was perfect on the night. The 33-year-old finished with 12 points on a flawless 4-of-4 shooting, including 3-of-3 from downtown. This was arguably the most comfortable Augustin has looked with Milwaukee since signing with the club in free agency, and that is a promising sign coming out of the All-Star break.
It is no secret that Augustin did not make a strong first impression with Milwaukee after a subpar first half of the season, but this performance does provide optimism. Hopefully, the break has allowed the guard to find his groove in the rotation and get things clicking regularly. The veteran guard could have a sizeable impact on this second unit when playing up to par, and he showed that in the win against the Knicks.
Milwaukee’s bench has been among their weaker points this season, but if they could get more solid performances from these two consistently, that would be a massive boost.
Time will tell if Augustin and Forbes can keep these efforts up with another big test Saturday as the Bucks hit the road to face the Washington Wizards. In what should be a great matchup, you can catch the action this Saturday at 6:00 p.m. CST for those viewing locally.