The Portland Trail Blazers took care of business Wednesday night, dominating the short-handed Milwaukee Bucks for a 130-99 win and moving to .500 (37-37) on the season.
The Blazers controlled the game from start to finish. They never trailed, jumping out to a quick 10-0 advantage and leading by as many as 33 points at one point.
Seven Blazers scored in double-figures led by Scoot Henderson with 23 points. Ryan Rollins bolstered his case for the NBA’s Most Improved Player award with 36 points for the Bucks
(29-43), but it wasn’t enough to keep the game competitive.
Here are some instant reactions to tonight’s game.
Player of Note
Scoot Henderson had one of his better games this season, scoring his 23 points on an efficient 6-13 shooting to go along with 4 assists. He made 3-7 three-pointers and knocked down all eight of his free throws.
He scored in a variety of ways, played under control and made good decisions with the ball. He did not commit a single turnover and had 10 of the Blazers’ first 12 points in the fourth quarter to stamp out any comeback hopes the Bucks may have had.
Stat of the Night
The Blazers scored 71 first half points to take control. Behind hot shooting from Jerami Grant and Jrue Holiday, they made 12-23 three pointers in the first half and led by 22 points at halftime.
The Blazers are now 8-4 in their last 12 games despite some offensive inconsistency. They are averaging more first half points than any team in the NBA over that stretch, but are last in second half scoring.
Against the Bucks on Wednesday night, they were able to put together a complete offensive game, following up their 71-point first half with a respectable 59 in the second half.
What We Noticed
Without Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Bucks are bad. They have lost 12 of their last 15 games and during that stretch, they have the 29th-ranked offense and 28th-ranked defense in the NBA.
The Blazers have done a good job against lesser opponents like the Bucks in recent weeks. They continue to get out to big first half leads against the teams (Brooklyn, Indiana, Milwaukee) that they are supposed to beat and tonight, they never let up.
They have two more home games this week against teams at the bottom of the standings and if they can replicate this performance, they should be able to take some positive momentum into next week’s showdown with the Los Angeles Clippers with play-in tournament positioning at-stake.
Up Next
The Blazers continue their homestand with a game on Friday night against the Dallas Mavericks. Tip is scheduled for 7:00 PM Pacific.
