3 things to watch as red-hot Milwaukee Bucks host Charlotte Hornets

The Milwaukee Bucks need to continue their dominance during their win streak

This seems pretty obvious, but on the first night of a back-to-back, it is even more crucial that the Bucks can get out to a big lead, sustain it, and then be able to rest their key players before they travel.

During the Bucks’ seven-game win streak, they have led each of their last six games by 20 or more and have only trailed for a total of 183 seconds during their win streak. They’ve posted the second-highest net rating during their last seven games at plus-14.4 and we’re finally beginning to see what we all expected the Bucks to look like with relatively good health.

Although the Hornets are a competitive team that can score a ton of points, if the Bucks want to be able to stay fresh for their game in Toronto tomorrow night, they’ll need to avoid a close game and have their starters play big minutes tonight.

The Bucks’ lone win against the Hornets last season came with Charlotte missing both Ball and Hayward, so it’s a team that gives them trouble. This will be their toughest challenge since the first game of their win streak against the Los Angeles Lakers, simply because of the matchup.

Regardless, the Bucks are on a roll right now and at relatively full strength, are more than capable of beating a Hornets team that struggles to keep the ball out of the basket and lost recently to the Houston Rockets.

The Bucks have played their best basketball of the season over the last seven games and it will be put to the test against an up-and-coming Hornets squad that will be looking to prove themselves against the defending champs.