Milwaukee vs. New Orleans: Bucks Down Pelicans

The Milwaukee Bucks earned their 51st victory of the season with a 130-113 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center on Tuesday night. The Bucks struggled to make pretty much anything in the first half, but blew the game wide-open with a 45 point third quarter performance. Here are three Bucks who deserve props for their efforts versus the Pelicans.

Giannis Antetokounmpo: Smooth Operator

He didn’t need to be very assertive last night in the victory, but still made a handful of impressive plays (as always). He needed only 21 minutes to put up 21 points, 12 rebounds, two assists, and two blocked shots. Giannis converted on 9-of-16 shots from the field, but he also passed up on a few WIDE OPEN shots from the perimeter :(. It’s just nitpicking at this point. I don’t know about you, but I LOVE the fact that he only played 21 minutes yesterday.

Khris Middleton is back.

His stroke has been inconsistent the last few weeks, but he was firing on all cylinders in the victory in New Orleans. He made 9-of-18 shots to total 23 points while also contributing five rebounds, and seven assists. Aside from the shooting display, what really stood out last night was his playmaking ability. He connected on a bevy of tough passes where only his teammates could grab him. Although his scoring is down a tad, he’s still helping the cause in every statistical category. Thanks again, Detroit.

Brook Lopez: Good at basketball.

In 30 minutes, he connected on 5-of-10 shots for 13 points while also hauling in eight rebounds. Furthermore, he added two blocked shots and continues to play phenomenal defense around the rim. He finished a game-high plus-24. Lopez’s defensive presence has helped Milwaukee be the best defensive team in the NBA. I wonder what their defense would look like if he was not on the team. Good thing we don’t have to worry about that...yet.

Bonus Bucks

• Malcolm Brogdon hit 7-of-10 shots for 18 points. He did have some moments where he over-dribbled but was much more successful playing off the ball.
• Eric Bledsoe scored 14 points and handed out five assists while finishing plus-21 in 29 minutes.
• Big Tony Snell guy here. He came off the bench and dropped 9 points while shooting 4-of-8 from the field. He continues his solid 2018-2019 campaign.
• Playing against his former team, Nikola Mirotic scored 14 points in 24 minutes.
• D.J. Wilson still did not play :(
• The Bucks won by 17 and made only 10 three-pointers.