After fighting for most of the game, the Milwaukee Bucks stalled late, letting the Minnesota Timberwolves ride a dominant final four minutes to a 112-100 win. The Bucks slump to 1-6 for only the fifth time in franchise history, extending their losing streak to three games. Tyler Herro led the Bucks in scoring, posting 21 points on 8/18 shooting. Jaime Jaquez scored 19 and added eight rebounds, while Myles Turner and AJ Green each added 13 points. LaMelo Ball led all players with a season-high 34
points on 12/21 shooting, while Ayo Dosunmu (19 points, 12 rebounds, eight assists) had a near triple-double.
NBA.com Box Score
Game Recap
Taylor Jenkins tweaked his rotation on Monday, dropping Ryan Rollins from the starting lineup in favor of Brayden Burries. Kyle Kuzma fired a bullet to an open Jaime Jaquez in the paint, who easily rolled it in for a layup to start the scoring. However, led by back-to-back long threes from LaMelo Ball, the Wolves rattled off 10 unanswered points to take an eight-point lead inside the first three minutes. Ball connected on his third triple of the game with just four minutes elapsed, putting the Timberwolves up 15-4 and forcing a Bucks timeout. Milwaukee quickly worked their way back out of the break, going on a 9-0 run behind triples from Jaquez, Burries, and Myles Turner; Burries showed the hustle to compete with bigger Wolves defenders on the offensive glass and consistently found teammates on the perimeter. The Wolves responded with a run of their own (12-3), scoring ten points and feasting in transition to lead 29-18 after one.
Impressively, Milwaukee quickly cut the Timberwolves’ lead out of the break and even took the lead, with AJ Green connecting on a pair of threes, Rollins getting a driving layup to go, and Burries converting a pull-up. However, Ball caught fire once again, helping Minnesota take the lead right back; the Wolves’ star PG scored 11 second-quarter points on 4/7 shooting, and his presence created so many good looks. However, the Bucks did one thing well: they took away Ball’s passing game, with his first assist coming with 1:40 remaining in the third quarter. Anyway, Ball’s and-one gave Minnesota a 45-41 lead with 2:51 remaining, but Milwaukee kept it tight, with Herro cashing back-to-back threes in the final minute to cut the home side’s lead to one, 48-47, at the half.
Although Minnesota stayed in control for much of the third quarter, Milwaukee kept the game within arm’s reach. Myles Turner’s triple off a Kuzma kick-out gave Milwaukee a 50-48 lead to start, but Minnesota wrenched it back with an Ayo Dosumnu fast-break layup. Bones Hyland’s three gave Minnesota a 68-63 lead with just under five minutes left. Milwaukee and Minnesota kept trading the lead as the game wore on. Trey Lyles gave the home side a nice kick off the bench, knocking down a few bombs late in the third to give Minnesota a 76-71 edge. The Wolves stayed ahead going into the final frame, though a tough Kasparas Jakucionis finish through contact cut their lead to just four at 80-76.
Minnesota slowly built its advantage as the fourth quarter wore on, with Milwaukee struggling with turnovers as they tried to bridge the gap; Joan Beringer intercepted a bad Jakucionis pass, another Jakucionis pass went out of bounds, and Turner lost the ball while trying to draw a foul. These mistakes let the Wolves slowly build a double-digit lead, punctuated by Beringer’s put-back layup that forced a Jenkins timeout. Eventually, Milwaukee’s offense flatlined as Minnesota picked up steam: Kuzma airballed a three and Kel’el Ware missed a dunk, while a Ball dagger pushed the T-Wolves’ lead to 15, their largest of the game. Despite trying some interesting tactics to close the game—including hack-a-Rudy—the Bucks just didn’t have enough.
Stat That Stood Out
The Bucks shot 30.6% from three-point range, highlighted by an ugly first quarter where they went 3/18 and a fourth quarter where they shot 2/9. The Bucks finished second in three-point shooting percentage (38.9%) last year, and they don’t look close to matching that this year.
Obscene Overreaction
Brayden Burries needs to start from here on out. The rookie got his first start tonight over Ryan Rollins, who has struggled mightily this season. Burries was far from perfect tonight, managing just nine points on 4/15 shooting, including 1/7 from beyond the arc. However, his physical defense and rebounding really stood out.
