Kulning the Herd: Weekend at Bradley’s

Welcome to “Kulning the Herd,” our weekly recap and preview of everything going on with the Milwaukee Bucks’ G-League affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd. What is kulning exactly? It’s an old Scandinavian herding call/song form. Take a listen to a small sample here.

After a four game road trip to start the season, the Wisconsin Herd have finally played a basketball game inside Wisconsin state lines. With the finishing touches being put on their new arena in Oshkosh, the Herd opened up their home slate in Milwaukee at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

Off the court, the Herd had a busy week. Monday started off with Xavier Munford being named G-League Performer of the Week:

Munford missed this past weekend’s action due to FIBA AmeriCup qualifiers with Team USA, so unfortunately he could not replicate his opening week performance, but congrats to X on the accolade and Team USA roster spot!

With Munford missing from the roster, the Herd decided to fill his spot with former Michigan State great, Shannon Brown.

Brown is the older brother of Milwaukee Bucks’ second round pick, Sterling Brown. Speaking of which, after a couple of inactive games with the Bucks, the youngest Brown was assigned to the Herd to pick up some consistent playing time.

The final bit of news coming out of Oshkosh was the Herd finally unveiling their mascot. Like the logo and jerseys, the Herd will keep that sweet, sweet organizational synergy flowing with a deer mascot.

Pointer? I hardly know her!

So now that we are all up to speed on the off court excitement, let’s recap the Herd’s weekend sweep at the Bradley Center.

Friday, November 17th vs. Windy City Bulls (Chicago Bulls)

The Herd kicked off their weekend back-to-back by hanging on against the Bulls and winning 100-92. James Young lead all scorers with 29 points, he was also a pair of rebounds shy from recording a double-double.

In his first game with the Herd, Sterling Brown dropped 25 points on 3/6 shooting from three-point range. With both two-way contract players (Gary Payton II and Joel Bolomboy) activated on the Milwaukee roster, Brown was lone player on the roster with a direct connection to the parent franchise. His debut performance was something to build off of and was definitely a positive step in his development.

Saturday, November 18th vs. Maine Red Claws (Boston Celtics)

The Herd followed up Friday night’s win with a close, 132-125 victory on Saturday night against the Red Claws. Once again, James Young lead everyone in scoring, but this time the former Kentucky Wildcat dropped a 40 burger on the Celtics’ affiliate.

As evidenced by his 80 percent field goal conversion mark, Young was simply on fire Saturday night. His only misses came from beyond the arc where he converted four of his seven chances. Sterling Brown added 26 points of his own, but went 0/4 from three-point land; he did, however, convert all 10 of his free throw attempts. JeQuan Lewis was one measly point away from a double-double as he finished the contest with nine points and a game high 11 assists.

Another two game week is up next for the Herd, but this time both match-ups are on the road. The games can be heard on 99.1FM in Oshkosh and 95.3FM in the Fox Cities and seen on Facebook Live. So let’s dive into this week’s upcoming Herd action.

Tuesday, November 21st @ Delaware 87ers (Philadelphia 76ers)

The Herd will put their current three game win streak on the line against the 87ers. Delaware is 0-7, so obviously I have the Herd winning this one in a romp, but what a horrific team name Delaware has. Even if the records of these teams were reversed I would still have the Herd winning because “87ers” is bad. I get that they are following the 76ers’ branding similar to what the Herd are doing with the Bucks, but maybe Delaware shouldn’t.

Saturday, November 25th @ Lakeland Magic (Orlando Magic)

Lakeland enters this week’s play with an identical 5-1 record to the Herd. With this game being on the road, I think the Herd drop a close one. Wisconsin Badgers fans might remember former Michigan State big man, Adreian Payne, who is on the Lakeland roster. Lakeland, Florida also happens to be the hometown of Milwaukee Brewers outfielder, Keon Broxton. The more you know.

After the 2-0 weekend, the Herd now sit atop the Central Division standings. Last week, I had the Herd down for a weekend sweep and they did not let me down. I have them pegged to go 1-1 this week, though. Prove me wrong (but in the good way) gentlemen!

Any predictions of your own? General comments or questions about the Herd, or even the G-League? Share them in the comments below and stop by next week as we recap the games above and look forward to week number four of the Herd’s inaugural season.