Milwaukee Bucks: 3 takeaways from struggle-filled loss to Utah Jazz

There is certainly some level of concern involving the Milwaukee Bucks right now after they fell to 3-4 on the season at the hands of the Utah Jazz last night.

To be clear, this team is far from healthy at the moment. As usual, Jrue Holiday, Brook Lopez, and Donte DiVincenzo all missed the game, but joining them on the injury report was Khris Middleton and Semi Ojelye. Injuries have unfortunately been a massive storyline for the Bucks early this season, and that was apparent in their 107-95 loss to Utah last night. That means it is not time to slam the panic button just yet, the Bucks find themselves in a tough spot trying to get their feet off the ground this year. With that being said, here are three takeaways from last night’s loss.

A massive free throw disparity dooms the Milwaukee Bucks against Utah Jazz

In what was undoubtedly a lopsided affair, the free throw disparity last night was 27-6 in favor of the Jazz. In a game where the Bucks lost by 12 points, a 19 shot difference in free throw attempts made it tough for the home team to have much of a shot in the end. The Jazz have been one of the best teams at drawing fouls in the early going in this season, and it undeniably showed as they went to the line time and time again last night.

The difference in personal fouls was 22-10, with the Bucks obviously holding the larger number. Whenever it seemed like Milwaukee was cutting into Utah’s lead, they would find themselves in trouble with another foul. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Justin Robinson, and Pat Connaughton were all quite aggressive by tallying three personal fouls each. Two-guard Grayson Allen finished with five, nearly fouling out on his big night. More on that in a minute.

The Bucks are not likely to win a game where they shoot just six free throw attempts. It is tough when Giannis Antetokounmpo, who typically shoots around 10 free throw attempts per game, is limited to just two. Due to how often he bulldozed his way to the rim, there were a few calls that were questionable, but the Jazz also deserve some credit for their defensive efforts. It was not a lack of aggressiveness that killed the team, just that some of the calls went the other way, and nights like that are destined to happen on occasion.

Onto the next one.