How the Bucks overcame an ‘eager’ offense to win the NBA Cup over the Bulls

MILWAUKEE – It was the first game of the group stage NBA Cup as the The Milwaukee Bucks hosted the Chicago Bulls. There was a healthy bit of red in the Fiserv Forum stands for an “intense” regional matchup that remained tight until the fourth quarter. The Bucks still won, pulling away from Chicago in the final minutes, 126-110.

“Tonight was an intense game,” Bucks head coach Doc Rivers he said after the contest, praising the format of the NBA Cup. “The reason it’s great is because you can see the early intensity. You put yourself in a playoff-type atmosphere and it allows you, from a coaching standpoint, to really evaluate what you need to change, what you need to work on.”

Despite the splendor and energy that the NBA Cup game brings, the home Bucks – on the green and gold court of the Cup – got off to a bad start. They scored just 11 points in the first eight minutes of the game, as missed shots from distance led to an early deficit.

“In the first half, I actually told our team as a group that was the worst shot we’ve taken this year in a half,” Rivers said after the game about his team’s early struggles. “I thought we were very impatient offensively.”

But a scoring surge — sparked by Amir Coffey’s dunk and Myles Turner’s 3-pointer — saw Milwaukee score 12 over the final four minutes of the first period. The Bucks took their first lead early in the second at 26-25 before going into halftime with a one-point lead, 53-52.

The Bucks overcame a rough start and secured victory in the NBA Cup.

Milwaukee had a higher shooting percentage and started hitting from deep in the third quarter. The leading path was Giannis Antetokounmpo and Miles Turnerthe latter of whom arguably had his best game as a Buck, finishing with a season-high, including key three-pointers in that stretch. Also in the third, Antetokounmpo grabbed eight rebounds, recording his sixth double-double of the season in just the first four minutes of the second half. Milwaukee leads by five, 85-80, heading into the fourth.

“We’re still trying to get him in the right spots. I thought he was the most aggressive today,” Rivers said of Turner.

“We looked at his numbers. And he played less, almost half as much as he did with Indiana, and I think we kind of screwed him over. I told him, ‘Hey, you can jump more with this team.’ And this morning we said just do what you feel; roll, pop, we’ll figure it out. Just you, be you.”

In the fourth, the Bulls kept him within shouting distance, but Milwaukee officially pulled away in the final four minutes, and Turner hit an and-1 finish and a free throw for his 20th point of the night. Moments later, Ryan Rollins sank a key 3, and the Bucks never looked back, completing the 16-point victory.

Kyle Kuzma received high praise for guarding Josh Giddy well throughout the night. The Bulls big guard was an early season MVP candidate, but was held to just 16 points on 6-14 shooting.

“I thought Kuz was absolutely phenomenal,” Rivers said, noting that he’s not often the Bucks’ point guard wing man. “I think Darwin (Ham) called him the Swiss Army Knife…He plays the four, plays the three, guards the one.

Giannis finished with 41 points, passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for most 40-point games in franchise history with 56. It was his second game of 40 points or more this season. He also pulled down 15 rebounds and finished with eight assists.

“Giannis changed the game,” Rivers said. “Especially when he started attacking the basket.”

Turner finished with 23 points on 8-13 shooting, 5-8 from 3. Rollins was the last Buck to finish with 20 or more; he also grabbed six rebounds and dished out four assists.

The Bucks stay at home for their next contest, inviting the Houston Rockets to Milwaukee on Sunday, November 9, with tip-off set for 2:30 PM Central.