A 107-77 win last night in Atlanta wasn't enough to build on for the Milwaukee Bucks in the second of back-to-back games against the Hawks. A first quarter that ended with the Bucks shooting a horrid 17 percent and going 4-of-23 from the field came back to stagger them at the end, with the Hawks squeaking out a 90-85 victory.
The Bucks ended the game shooting 39.2 percent, which was their third-lowest percentage of the season. Milwaukee also allowed 32 Atlanta points off of 19 turnovers.
"Turnovers happen. They are a part of our DNA right now that we have to address." Coach Jason Kidd said after the loss. "Also, we have to take care of the ball late in the game. We had turnovers after getting a stop, that hurt us too."
The Bucks started the game 1-for-10 shooting, resulting in Atlanta taking a commanding 13-3 lead early. Milwaukee only scored 10 points at the end of one, a new season-low.
"We had some good looks. We had open looks that we just couldn't convert. Guys had open threes or we got to the basket and we just couldn't finish." Kidd said.
On the other end, the Hawks shot nearly as bad, going 8-for-23 from the field at the end of one. Atlanta combined with Milwaukee to total an astounding 53 rebounds in the first half.
"There are some things we have to look at, understanding that some nights its not going for you." Kidd said. "We have to find a rebound as a team, and we just didn't do that."
A Khris Middleton three gave the Bucks their first lead of the half with 5:46 remaining in the second. The Bucks shot in their 30s to end the half, but hung around with the Hawks - who were shooting just 34 percent at the time - to be down only just two, 39-37.
A flat third quarter once again put Milwaukee behind with the Hawks, who scored 16 points off of Bucks turnovers in the session. They also managed to score 10 second-chance points alone off seven offensive rebounds.
Brandon Knight scored five straight points in the fourth to help close the gap to just two and make the score 82-80 with 3:31 remaining, forcing Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer to signal for a timeout. The Hawks responded with four straight points coming out of the break, followed by two Jeff Teague free-throws with 29.2 remaining to help Atlanta seal the game. Teague finished with a game-high 25 points, which included 10 shots at the line, even with the Hawks shooting a season-low 36.7 percent at the end of the game.
Middleton led all Bucks players with 21 points off the bench.