76ers at Bucks
Two of the NBA's worst teams will get together on Saturday when the Philadelphia 76ers visit the Milwaukee Bucks. Philadelphia snapped a season-high seven-game losing streak last time out, knocking off Brooklyn in overtime. Evan Turner's driving layup at the buzzer was the decisive bucket and the 76ers forward told the Philadelphia Inquirer seeing it go in gave the team a lift it needed. "I'm glad we won," he said. "We're just trying to get some momentum going into Christmas."
Milwaukee also reached overtime on Friday but ultimately fell to the Cavaliers in Cleveland. The Bucks, who have lost five in a row and are 2-8 in their last 10 games, have had several chances to win games of late that ended up going for naught - telltale signs of a young team simply learning how to close things out. "There has to be total team focus from a last-shot standpoint," coach Larry Drew told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel of late game strategies. "The play has to be run with pace and precision."
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, CSN Philadelphia, FSN Wisconsin (Milwaukee)
ABOUT THE 76ERS (8-19): Philadelphia got back the NBA's top-scoring rookie, Michael Carter-Williams, against Brooklyn Friday after the point guard missed seven games with a skin infection. Carter-Williams, who leads all NBA first-year players in scoring and assists, posted 15 points and 10 assists against the Nets, recording his seventh double-double. Turner leads the 76ers in scoring, averaging 19.6 points.
ABOUT THE BUCKS (5-20): In a season that has seen Drew employ what seems like a limitless number of lineup variations due to injury and ineffectiveness, rookie Giannis Antetokounmpo has impressed his coach enough to warrant a spot in the starting lineup of late. "He plays the right way," Drew said. "He plays with energy and he can affect the game without scoring. For me, that's huge." Antetokounmpo recorded 10 points, seven rebounds, two steals and two assists in his first start against New York on Wednesday and has posted double digit scoring totals in three of his last five games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Philadelphia has allowed opponents 100 or more points in 14 of its last 15 games.
2. Milwaukee ranks last in the NBA in scoring, averaging 91 points, while the 76ers allow a league-high average of 111.5.
3. Philadelphia has allowed an opponent 15 or more 3-pointers seven times this season, establishing an NBA record.