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 All of those were good things, but the two items on the stat sheet
of particular interest to interim head coach Joe Prunty were
Milwaukee's assist and turnover totals, categories that have been
problematic during the Bucks' disappointing season.
Tuesday, though, was a reversal of fortune. Milwaukee dished out 28
assists -- on 43 baskets -- and turned the ball over just five
times, leading to one of the more satisfying victories of the
season.
"It's very difficult to do that, especially against a very good
defensive team like (the Bulls)," Prunty said. "I think the ball was
moving early on. We talked about that; sharing the ball and getting
everybody a touch.
"We took care of the ball. We were strong with it. The effort we
made to take care of it was outstanding. It's what we're trying to
do every night."
Milwaukee limped out of the gate, shooting just 32 percent in the
first quarter and a shade over 40 percent for the half but trailed
just 51-46 at the break.
The Bucks caught fire in the third, though, as forward Giannis
Antetokounmpo scored eight of his team-leading 29 points on 3-of-4
shooting. Forward Jabari Parker scored six of his 16 in the quarter,
and he gave Milwaukee its first lead of the night on a short jumper
at the 9:02 mark. That was part of a 17-3 run that put the Bucks up
by eight three minutes later.
Chicago, though, answered with an 8-0 run and knotted things up at
67-67 when guard Aaron Brooks' 3-pointer from the corner got a
friendly bounce and fell in with 4:01 remaining.
Bulls guard Jimmy Butler made two free throws to give Chicago an
eight-point lead with 6:52 left in the game before another Milwaukee
rally tied the game at 93-93 with 3:25 to go.
A three-point play from center Greg Monroe and a 3-pointer by Kris
Middleton put the Bucks up six, and Milwaukee held on the rest of
the way.
"We just continued to stick with it," said Monroe, who missed his
first four shots but earned his 19th double-double of the season
with 17 points and 12 rebounds. "We got stops where we were able to
run. That was the biggest thing we did tonight. When we did get the
rebound, we were able to get out and run and get a lot of buckets in
early offense."
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Butler led Chicago with 30 points, while forward Nikola Mitotic and
reserve guard Tony Snell finished with 17 each. However, the Bulls
hit just 41.2 percent of their shots, despite a 12-for-29 showing
from beyond the arc, and gave up 30 points on 17 turnovers.
"It starts with communication," said Bulls coach Fred Holberg, whose
team lost its three straight. "You have to communicate in
transition. You have to communicate your ball-screen coverages. You
have to talk things out, and we haven't done a consistent enough job
with that."
The Bulls played the final quarter without point guard Derrick Rose,
who left with a sore left patellar tendon after compiling nine
points and three assists in 20 minutes of action.
"We'll get him back, re-evaluate him tomorrow and go from there,"
Hoiberg said "It's too early to tell (if it's a serious injury)."
NOTES: Bucks SG O.J. Mayo returned after sitting out Milwaukee's
100-88 loss at New York on Sunday with a sore left hamstring. He
scored five points in 26 minutes Tuesday. ... The Bulls defeated the
Bucks 117-106 at the United Center on Jan. 5. Chicago has won nine
of the past 11 regular-season meetings with the Bucks and is 9-4 in
its past 13 visits to the Bradley Center. ... The Bulls have scored
100 points or more in a franchise-record 12 consecutive games,
averaging 106 per game during that stretch. ... Bucks SG Khris
Middleton came into the game having scored 20 or more points in his
past three games and seven of his last 10. In those games, Middleton
was shooting 52.2 percent from the field and 51 percent from beyond
the arc. He shot 6-for-16 while scoring 16 points Tuesday.
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