Trail Blazers at Bucks
The Portland Trail Blazers have emerged as one of the league's top 3-point-shooting teams through the first 11 games, and that has been a major factor in the team's 9-2 start. The Trail Blazers look to continue their success from long range on Wednesday night as they conclude their four-game Eastern road trip against the Milwaukee Bucks. The Blazers have won seven straight games and should fare well against a Bucks team that has dropped five in a row.
The Blazers' rise to the upper echelon of the Western Conference has been fueled by the long ball. Portland connected on eight 3-pointers in their 108-98 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Monday night and is averaging 111.7 points on what has been a perfect road swing to date. Milwaukee has been positively dismal on the offensive end during its skid, scoring a paltry 156 combined points in its most recent losses to Indiana and Oklahoma City.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, CSNW (Portland), FSWI (Milwaukee)
ABOUT THE TRAIL BLAZERS (9-2): Guard Wesley Matthews is off to a blazing start at an average of 16 points while shooting 52.6 percent from beyond the arc. He realizes that critics believe Portland's hot start is unsustainable, and his message to them is clear. "I'm sure there are people waiting for us to go on a five-, six-game losing skid, go back to how we were," he told the Oregonian. "(They're waiting) for us to start taking too many shots, (they say) we shoot too many 3s, blah, blah, blah. That's cool. We keep playing every game to win."
ABOUT THE BUCKS (2-7): Milwaukee may be having a dreadful start to the season, but the team managed to forge its own identity as a sharpshooting team from beyond the arc. The Bucks are fifth in the league in 3-point shooting - one spot behind the Trail Blazers - and are led by veteran guard O.J. Mayo, who is hitting 53.3 percent of his attempts from outside. "O.J. can make shots, particularly when he gets a good look and he gets into a rhythm," coach Larry Drew told the Sentinel-Journal. "I encourage him to take the three when he has a good look."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Milwaukee has won the previous four meetings, scoring an average of 111 points in the process.
2. Trail Blazers F Nicolas Batum matched a season low with seven points in the win over Brooklyn.
3. Mayo averages 17.8 points on 47.4 percent from 3-point range in 18 career games versus the Blazers.