76ers at Bucks
The Philadelphia 76ers are struggling with losses in three straight games and are coming off back-to-back setbacks by 20-plus points to fellow playoff contenders in the Eastern Conference. The road trip doesn't get any easier as the 76ers try to figure things out and avoid heading home winless on the four-game excursion when they visit the NBA-best Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday.
Philadelphia dropped a 127-117 decision at lowly Atlanta to begin the trip and was run off the floor in losses at Boston and Miami to fall to 9-18 on the road - the worst road record of any team in the top eight of its respective conference. "The physicality side of things, we gotta step that up," 76ers All-Star Ben Simmons told reporters after the 137-106 loss at the Heat on Monday. "That comes with experience, also just comes with personality. Don't get bullied. Fight over screens, get through screens. If you gotta knock somebody over, knock 'em over. If you gotta hit somebody in the face and knock 'em down so they don't score, hit 'em in the face." The Bucks have no trouble playing a physical game and knocked around rookie Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans in a 120-108 triumph on Tuesday - their 16th win in the last 18 games. Milwaukee held New Orleans to 38.4 percent shooting after limiting the Phoenix Suns to 39.4 percent in a 129-108 triumph Sunday.
TIME: 8 p.m. ET. TV: TNT, TSN1/4
ABOUT THE 76ERS (31-20): Monday's setback marked the worst loss of the season for Philadelphia, which was expected to contend with the Bucks and others for the East but instead sits in sixth place in the conference as it limps to the All-Star break. "To see the team spirit, which is usually high in practice and off the court, not translate to the court is obviously a concern," 76ers coach Brett Brown told reporters of the latest setback. "The attitude of the group does not point to what ended up happening in the game, which normally is not the case." Simmons, who called the team "soft" after the game, was a team-worst miuns-31 in the loss despite 16 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.
ABOUT THE BUCKS (43-7): Reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo delivered 34 points on 12-of-17 shooting, 17 rebounds and six assists in Tuesday's victory but was more excited about his success while playing one-on-one defense against Williamson. "I love it," Antetokounmpo told reporters of going up against another star. "This year I haven't had a lot of opportunities to do that. I'm more like the guy that is behind the defense and trying to be active, trying to go block a shot late or try to go rebound, but I take pride in that. Whenever I get an opportunity to guard a guy one-on-one, I like it." Antetokounmpo tallied at least 30 points, 16 rebounds and six assists in each of his last four contests and is averaging 30.1 points, 12.8 boards and 5.8 assists.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. 76ers SF Tobias Harris scored a season-low six points on 3-of-12 shooting Monday.
2. Bucks SG Wesley Matthews scored 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting Tuesday to snap a string of four straight games scoring in single digits.
3. Philadelphia earned a 121-109 home win over Milwaukee on Christmas Day behind double-doubles from Simmons, Joel Embiid and Al Horford.