Knicks Deer in the Headlights with Season High Turnovers

Friday night Knicks featured a game with the Milwaukee Bucks trying to maintain their current fifth seed status in the Playoffs. Milwaukee held a two game lead over the Boston Celtics and Brooklyn Nets entering into Friday night’s action.

Giannis Antelokounmpo returned to the starting lineup after being completely benched for the previous game against the Cleveland Cavaliers Wednesday night. As per Matt Velazquez of the Journal Sentinel, Jason Kidd would not shed any light on the subject, saying “Coach’s decision,” four times during the coach’s post-game interview.

The opening quarter was a nice back and forth game to start, exchanging leads six times and being knotted up a couple of times. Milwaukee went on a mini 7-0 run to get some breathing room mid-way through the first quarter, highlighted by a spectacular, yet scary play/chain of events.

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Cole Aldrich was taken off the dribble by Michael Carter-Williams, yet was still able to recover to block Carter-Williams’ layup attempt. Cole’s block led to a fast break where Tim Hardaway Jr. took on Antelokounmpo one on one on the fast break with a spin move. Hardaway Jr. should have passed it back to one of the trailing teammates…but Hardaway Jr. being Hardaway Jr., he had to take the shot on the fast break. Hardaway Jr. got blocked by Antelokounmpo on the play and also reinjured his wrist. The “Greek Freak” then took the ball the other way and threw down a spectacular jam. The jam gave the Bucks a 17-11 lead with 5:34 remaining in the first quarter.

Milwaukee led by 29-21 after one quarter of play. Aldrich showed off his passing abilities, dishing a few impressive passes from the high-post. Aldrich passed it to a backdoor cutting Langston Galloway a couple of times, and could have had another backdoor assist if Hardaway Jr. converted on the layup. With the season winding down, Aldrich has precious little games remaining to show Phil Jackson why he should remain on the roster past this season. Aldrich’s continue to show the important little things needed for a successful team, and showed glimpses of what he can do for the future.

Shane Larkin led an 8-0 run early in the second quarter to erase the lead Milwaukee held, scoring six of the eight points in the run. Larkin finished the game with 14 points and 5 assist. The early run would get extended in the quarter to a 19-4 run, punctuated by an Ricky Ledo block that lead to an Quincy Acy and-one alley-oop dunk, giving New York a 39-34 lead with 5:34 left in the second quarter.

Milwaukee though ended the first half strong, going on a 13-4 run with their suffocating defense. New York in the final two minutes in the first half could not convert on a field goal, and only scored on a few free throws to close out the half. The Bucks went into half time with a 52-49 lead.

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New York for what seems like the millionth time…again came out flat out of half time. Milwaukee went on a 17-2 run to start the second half, gaining a 69-51 lead with 6:53 minutes remaining in the third quarter. Kris Middleton and Antetokounmpo combined for a dozen points during the run. Middleton finished the game with 22 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 steals! Antetokounmpo finished the game with a game high 23 points and 9 rebounds. New York went scoreless for four minutes during that stretch…

Galloway tried his best to cut into the deficit, being personally responsible for ten points in a mini 12-5 run. Galloway knocked down two three-pointers and was able to get into the paint for a layup, as well as leading Larkin to a layup with an assist. This run got the Knicks within reaching distance 74-63, but an mini 5-0 run by the Bucks to finish the third quarter, highlighted by an Antetokounmpo buzzer beater gave Milwaukee an 81-65 lead entering the final period.

New York recorded more turnovers than field goals made in the third quarter…coughing up the ball ten times in the period. New York is 19^th in the league at keeping control of the ball with 14.4 turnovers per game. Milwaukee is the best team at forcing their opponents to turnover the basketball, forcing 17.1 opponent turnovers per game. The Bucks are also third in steals with 9.5 per game.

The final score of 99-91 was not indicative of how dominate Milwaukee was, New York did not really put up much of a fight in the fourth quarter. The win gave Milwaukee a season series sweep, the first time within 24 years. The New York Knicks looked like deer in headlights against the Bucks Friday night, recording a season high in turnovers with 26 miscues.

Hardaway Jr. returned to game but was ineffective (what is new?), finishing the game with the worst +/- Friday night -20. Hardaway Jr. needed seven field goal attempts to score seven puts, and turned the ball over five times. Galloway led the Knicks in scoring with 20 points, but the most impactful player was Louis Amundson. Amundson finished the game with a double-double, 10 points and 11 rebounds. Amundson also had two blocks, and had a positive +/- for the Knicks with a +16.