Pelicans at Bucks
Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans just can't seem to catch a break and are on the verge of setting a dubious franchise record. The Pelicans will try to avoid setting the team record for losses to begin a season when they close out a three-game road trip by visiting the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday.
Davis piled up 34 points, eight rebounds, four blocks and two steals at Sacramento on Tuesday but could not drag his team to the victory as New Orleans fell 102-94. “None of us (expected this), but we’re here," Davis told reporters on Tuesday after the Pelicans matched the 2004-05 squad for the worst start since the franchise moved from Charlotte. "We’ve got to dig ourselves out of this hole, keep competing and keep having fun. We’re playing hard and doing all the right things. We’ve just got to find a way to get over the hump." The Bucks already have a win over New Orleans on the ledger this season - a 117-113 road triumph on Nov. 1 - but are coming off their worst performance of the young season. Milwaukee shot 36.6 percent and managed one point in overtime during an 86-75 overtime loss at Dallas on Sunday.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FSN New Orleans, FSN Wisconsin (Milwaukee)
ABOUT THE PELICANS (0-8): New Orleans, which suffered through an injury-plagued 2015-16 campaign and is missing two starters in Jrue Holiday (personal), Tyreke Evans (knee) plus reserve Quincy Pondexter (knee), is struggling to find consistent scoring options beyond Davis. Rookie guard Buddy Hield (14 points) and guard E'Twaun Moore (13 points) were the only two aside from Davis to reach double figures on Tuesday. “We’ve got to shoot the ball better," Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry told reporters. "We’ve got to be a little more resilient, defensively coming up with stops and not giving up big plays. ... In some cases, we’re not playing smart and have crucial turnovers, and all the things you can’t have when you’re a team that’s struggling."
ABOUT THE BUCKS (4-3): Milwaukee averaged 119.7 points during a three-game winning streak but could not get the shots to fall in Dallas. Budding star Giannis Antetokounmpo scored a season-low 11 points in the loss and committed five turnovers while battling foul trouble. "He couldn't get into a rhythm," Bucks coach Jason Kidd told reporters. "But that's just something for a young player to digest. It's 48 minutes. Look, with the two fouls early, he ended up with the ball with seven seconds left for the last shot and for us to win. We had the ball in his hands to make a play, and we couldn't get the ball to go in for us late."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Bucks C Greg Monroe grabbed double-digit rebounds in three of the last four games.
2. Pelicans PG Tim Frazier collected 20 points, nine assists and four steals in the Nov. 1 loss to Milwaukee.
3. The Bucks won the last two in the series after New Orleans took six straight.