Nets at Bucks
The two worst teams in the Eastern Conference square off Saturday when the Milwaukee Bucks host the Brooklyn Nets. Brooklyn was expecting to be near the top of the conference but the addition of aging veterans Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett haven’t yet proven to be difference-making acquisitions. Milwaukee’s decline was a bit more predictable after guards Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings departed but it still ranks as a surprise that only the Utah Jazz have a worse record.
The Bucks recorded only their second win in the last 15 games when they prevailed in overtime against the Washington Wizards on Friday. Brooklyn’s struggles have continued to get worse and it lost its last two games against Denver (24) and New York (30) by a combined 54 points. The Nets have been plagued by injuries and the current wounded include guards Deron Williams (ankle) and Jason Terry (ankle) as well as forwards Pierce (hand) and Andrei Kirilenko (back).
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, YES (Brooklyn), FSN Wisconsin (Milwaukee)
ABOUT THE NETS (5-14): Guard Joe Johnson criticized the offensive philosophy after the loss to the Knicks, saying there is too much emphasis on forcing the ball into center Brook Lopez. “Offensively, we don’t really have an identity,” Johnson said. “We throw it down to Brook pretty much and when there’s nothing there, we put him in a lot of tough positions. We just basically sit and watch. So we make his job a lot harder than it should be. Without us doing a lot of movement and cutting, we make everybody’s job hard.” Lopez leads the Nets with a 19.7 average and has posted a career-best streak of 36 double-digit outings.
ABOUT THE BUCKS (4-15): Milwaukee experienced a rare dose of joy with Friday’s victory as it made up a five-point deficit in the final minute of regulation and then dominated the overtime while forcing Washington to go 0-for-6 shooting in the extra session. Forward Khris Middleton continued his recent strong play with a career-high 29 points and Brandon Knight hit the tying 3-pointer in regulation as part of a 20-point performance. “It was huge,” Middleton said afterward. “We’ve been struggling all season so far and just to gut out a win like this in overtime is good.”
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Brooklyn has won the last two meetings after Milwaukee put together a 13-game winning streak.
2. The Nets allowed 16 3-pointers in Thursday’s loss to the Knicks.
3. Bucks F Caron Butler (knee) is expected to miss his sixth consecutive game.