Warriors at Bucks
The Golden State Warriors are just checking off franchise records as they go along and are showing no signs of slowing down. The Warriors will try to set a franchise record for wins when they visit the Milwaukee Bucks on the second night of a back-to-back on Saturday. Golden State picked up its eighth straight triumph and matched the 1975-76 club for the franchise record of 59 wins by blasting the Memphis Grizzlies 107-84 on Friday.
The Bucks are holding down the No. 6 spot in the Eastern Conference, three games ahead of the Miami Heat, and are looking for their first three-game winning streak since bridging the All-Star break with four consecutive victories. Milwaukee had dropped six in a row but turned things around with a one-point win over the Heat before reaching .500 again with a 111-107 win over Indiana on Thursday. "We're 36-36. I don't think we ever thought we were in a race,” Bucks coach Jason Kidd told reporters. “We're in the sixth spot. We will be in the sixth spot until someone overtakes us.”
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, CSN Bay Area (Golden State), FSN Wisconsin (Milwaukee)
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (59-13): Golden State needs one more win to clinch to No. 1 seed in the Western Conference after moving 9 1/2 games in front of the Grizzlies with Friday’s trashing. The Warriors are attempting to reach 60 wins for the first time in franchise history and already set the franchise mark for road wins thanks to Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson combining to go 14-of-21 from 3-point range Friday. Curry has hit at least five 3-pointers in three straight games and has gone for at least 30 points and 10 assists in back-to-back games.
ABOUT THE BUCKS (36-36): Ersan Ilyasova has picked up his level of play this month and put it all together with a career-high 34 points on 12-of-14 shooting Thursday. “He was cooking," Kidd told reporters of Ilyasova. "He was aggressive, he took open shots, he just didn't settle. He also put the ball on the floor. Everything he shot pretty much went in.” The Turkish forward is putting up 16.3 points this month with two double-doubles in the last four games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Warriors are the 10th team in NBA history to post at least 45 wins by double figures.
2. Milwaukee G Khris Middleton is averaging 18.5 points over the last four games.
3. Golden State has earned a win over every NBA team for the first time since the 1991-92 season, including a 102-93 win over Milwaukee on March 4.