Cavs 113, Bucks 102: Double dose of James, Irving too much
Cleveland – Hey, enough already.
The Milwaukee Bucks saw enough of LeBron James and Kyrie Irving in the last two nights to give them plenty of bad dreams.
The Bucks could not match the intensity they showed in an overtime loss at home to Cleveland on Tuesday and dropped a 113-102 decision to the Cavaliers on Wednesday night at a sold-out Quicken Loans Arena.
"They had control of the game from the start, and that just shows why they're the champs," Bucks coach Jason Kidd said. "For the last 48 hours, to see those two, they put a lot of pressure on the defense. We understand why they're the best team in the league.
"They showed it again tonight and they showed it (Tuesday). They never panic. They've seen everything."
The Bucks are now 4-2 in back-to-backs against the same team after sweeping Brooklyn and Chicago earlier this month before dropping both games to Cleveland. They have another set coming up against Washington on Friday and Monday.
"I thought last night (Tuesday) took a lot out of us," Bucks rookie guard Malcolm Brogdon said. "But I thought we had a choice to come play with energy tonight, and I don't think we did that.
"We had a little bit of energy but when they punched us in the mouth, we didn't respond. It went downhill from there."
Irving simply ran circles around or slashed through the Bucks defense while scoring 31 points and adding 13 assists and six rebounds.
James stayed red-hot as he hit 4 of 7 three-pointers and finished with 29 points, nine rebounds and six assists in 34 minutes. Cleveland improved to 21-6 with its third straight victory.
"LeBron is the best in the world and he proved it in this two-game stretch with us," Brogdon said. "He's hard to handle.
"He's not a guy that you want to go over the screens; you don't really want to pressure him way out there. You want to force him to shoot those shots. But when he's knocking them down, it changes the whole landscape of the game."
BOX SCORE: Cavaliers 113, Bucks 102
Giannis Antetokounmpo paced the Bucks (13-14) with 28 points, five rebounds and five assists and Jabari Parker had 27 points. Brogdon contributed 11 points, seven assists and five rebounds in 27 minutes off the bench.
The Bucks pulled within 74-71 on a put-back by center Greg Monroe with 4:27 left in the third quarter, but the Cavaliers finished on an 18-6 run to take a 92-77 lead entering the final quarter.
Richard Jefferson, James and substitute Jordan McRae sank three-pointers during the run.
"This is a game where we tested how good we are and how good we can be," Bucks center John Henson said. "If we play like we've played the last week, regardless of our wins and losses, we'll be fine. We're not beating ourselves. We're playing the right way for the most part."
Kidd saw some deficiencies he hopes to change before the Bucks play the Wizards at home on Friday night.
"I think we lost a little trust," Kidd said. "We have been moving the ball for the last four or five days, and for the last 48 hours we stopped moving the ball. When we had only four turnovers going into the fourth quarter, that means we're not sharing the ball.
"We're a team that turns the ball over with the intent of passing to our teammates. The ball stuck. Taking advantage of the matchups doesn't always means you have to shoot it. We'll work on it and hopefully we can fix it before Friday."
Kidd pulled Antetokounmpo for the entire fourth quarter and Parker played just 4 minutes in the period before exiting for good. But Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue left James and Irving in the game for most of the quarter. James went to the bench with 3:33 left and the Cavaliers leading, 112-95. Irving finally sat down with 2:32 remaining.
"I think our team heard about Milwaukee's length and athleticism and how well they play us," Lue said. "We wanted to come out and make a point."
Kidd played all 13 of his eligible players, including Rashad Vaughn for 16 minutes, Miles Plumlee for 11 minutes and rookie Thon Maker for 8 minutes.
Jefferson was ejected late in the game after getting angry with Maker at the end of a play. A loose ball foul and two technicals were assessed to Jefferson.
THREE TAKEAWAYS
1. Bucks guard Matthew Dellavedova got rushed by his former Cavaliers teammates in a pre-game ceremony as he received his world championship ring. Kyrie Irving gave him a big hug and J.R. Smith came out despite wearing a huge cast on his right arm after fracturing his thumb in Tuesday’s game in Milwaukee. "A couple guys got a couple shots in, I think," Dellavedova said. "I'm glad my family and my fiance could be here to see it." Dellavedova said the ring briefly got knocked on the floor "because I looked in the box and it wasn't there." But he said someone quickly found it and his family had the ring. The Cleveland crowd cheered loudly for Dellavedova on his first trip back to Quicken Loans Arena after he played his first three NBA seasons with the Cavaliers. "The fans here are pretty special," he said. "I loved playing here."
2. LeBron James earned a rest after hitting 3 three-pointers in succession midway through the second quarter. The third triple gave the Cavaliers a 51-35 lead but the Bucks pulled within five points at halftime with James sitting out the rest of the half.
3. Giannis Antetokounmpo was 10 for 10 at the foul line in the first half and the Bucks were 11 for 11 as a team. Milwaukee finished 21 of 29 at the line and Antetokounmpo went 13 of 14.
FROM THE STATS SHEET
» Cleveland hit 15 of 27 three-point attempts Wednesday and James finished 9 for 16 from three-point range over the two games against Milwaukee.
» The Cavaliers outscored the Bucks in the paint, 48-44.
» The Bucks had a 20-5 advantage in fast-break points.
UP NEXT
Teams: Washington Wizards (13-15) at Milwaukee Bucks (13-14).
When: 7 p.m. Friday.
Where: BMO Harris Bradley Center.
About the Wizards: Washington beat the Bulls in Chicago, 107-97, on Wednesday as John Wall had 23 points and Bradley Beal 21. Washington backup center Ian Mahinmi will undergo platelet-rich plasma treatment on both knees and will be out for six weeks, the team announced. The Bucks lost a 110-105 road decision to the Wizards on Dec. 10. Wall finished with 24 points and 11 assists to pace the Wizards and Kelly Oubre Jr. added 19 points while defending Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo. The teams meet again in the nation's capital on Monday night.