The NBA In-Season Tournament has brought plenty of amazing action, with the knockout stage taking the stakes of the competition to new heights. On Tuesday night, however, the Milwaukee Bucks had no intention of keeping it close against the New York Knicks. Buoyed by the raucous home crowd at Fiserv Forum, the Bucks simply couldn’t be stopped on the offensive end, making it rain from everywhere on the court en route to a 146-122 victory over the Knicks.
The Bucks got anything they wanted on the offensive end, and they showed just how dangerous they can be when they’re firing on all cylinders. This version of the Bucks is what many analysts believed we’ll be getting on a more consistent basis. With Giannis Antetokounmpo putting immense pressure on the paint, the Knicks’ defense collapsed time and time again, leading to 23 made triples for Milwaukee on a scorching-hot 60.5 percent shooting.
And in the process of allowing the Bucks to have carte blanche on offense, the Knicks posted their objectively-worst defensive outing since 1979. According to Scott Grodsky of CBS 58 News, Milwaukee’s 146 points are the most New York has allowed in nearly 44 years. (The Knicks allowed 145 points to the Kansas City Kings on December 8, 1979, so it hasn’t yet reached the 44-year mark.)
This was simply a lethargic defensive performance from a Knicks team that, entering the night, ranked third in defensive rating (allowing 109 points per 100 possessions). The demolition they received at the hands of the Bucks sent them all the way down to seventh; they’re now allowing 110.8 points per 100 possessions, which is an eye-popping decline in one game.
For one half, the Knicks were able to keep up with the Bucks on offense, which isn’t too surprising, since Milwaukee does have a bottom-10 defense in the NBA. But no one was able to provide any semblance of reliable help for Julius Randle, making it easy for the Bucks to crowd his airspace and take the ball away from his hands.
Meanwhile, for the Bucks, they’ll now be heading to Las Vegas with a matchup against the Indiana Pacers on the docket. That should be a high-scoring affair as well, reminiscent of their matchup back on November 9.
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