3 takeaways from Milwaukee Bucks’ painful loss to New Orleans Pelicans

Grayson Allen caught fire in the third quarter to help notch his best performance in a Milwaukee Bucks uniform

With Antetokounmpo, Middleton, and Portis all missing time lately, all eyes have been directed in the direction of Grayson Allen. After a red-hot start to the season, the guard had cooled off lately, and many questioned whether or not he could step up with the Bucks severely shorthanded. The sharpshooter certainly answered that question against the Pelicans in the second half.

Allen had been quiet throughout the first half as he had just five points. With the Pelicans gaining momentum and building a lead, the guard flipped the switch and helped get his team back into the game by scoring 15 points on 5-of-6 shooting from three in the quarter. This included 12 straight points as he found the hot hand offensively. His outburst in the third helped tie the game at 77 heading into the fourth, giving the Bucks a chance to pull out the victory over the final 12 minutes of action.

After 39-and-a-half minutes, Allen finished with a season-high 25 points on 8-of-17 shooting for the night. Seven of Allen’s eight made shots were 3-pointers, which tied a previous career-high he set against the Bucks last season. Last night would have been a great night to see him get a new career-high in single-game 3-point makes due to how close the game was, but it was a fantastic performance nevertheless. With several of Milwaukee’s key pieces set to remain sidelined, Allen will have to build off this game and ride the hot hand into the next matchup. Hopefully this game can create some momentum. The Bucks will undoubtedly need it.