NBA 2018-19: 3 Talking points from Milwaukee Bucks vs New Orleans Pelicans

Final Score: Milwaukee Bucks 130 - New Orleans Pelicans 113

The Milwaukee Bucks defeated the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center in front of 15,562 fans. Bucks improved their overall record to 51-17 and remain on top of the Eastern Conference standings, whereas the Pelicans sit on the 12th position of the Western Conference.

Giannis Antetokounmpo gave an incredible performance along with Khris Middleton and Malcolm Brogdon to secure the win.

New Orleans are facing a tough time, after winning three games in a row, now they find themselves with a losing streak of four games. The road to Playoffs is looking tough for them. On the other hand, The Bucks fans can hope to achieve glory this season. Milwaukee improved their on-road record to 24-12 with this win.

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#3 Poor shooting cost Pelicans

Milwaukee Bucks v New Orleans Pelicans

The Pelicans set franchise record for the most three-pointers attempted with 47, but were able to convert only 10 out of all those tries. Their three-point shooting percentage was very low(21.3%). This was one of the major reasons for the Pelicans downfall. During the game, they took 107 shots (total) but made just 46.

New Orleans scored only 2-of-16 shots in the first quarter and 3-of-27 from the three-point line in the first half. This led to the Bucks taking a huge lead in the second half. The third and fourth quarter were decent as they shot 7 threes out of 20 attempts, but could not lead the team to victory.

Darius Miller was the only Pelicans player to shoot above 50 percent from three-point range. After the game, Miller said, "We had a rough-shooting night, I think we got the looks that we wanted. We had good shots with good shooters, we just didn’t knock them down tonight".

#2 Payton's career high in rebounds, Davis impresses despite the loss

Payton

Elfrid Payton was by far the best player for the Pelicans. Payton got his second consecutive triple-double(first player to achieve this feat since 2008) for the team and set a career high with 15 rebounds(with scoring 14 points and giving 11 assists). He scored a decent 12 points in the first half.

When asked about his consecutive triple-double games, Payton replied, "I definitely feel much healthier than I’ve been throughout the season. I’m kind of getting a head of steam. I’ve just got to try to figure out a way to turn it into wins".

Apart from Elfrid, Anthony Davis performed well for New Orleans. He scored 21 points, 12 rebounds, two assists and also made two blocks while playing only 21 minutes. Davis was subbed out and did not play the fourth quarter. Pelicans center Julius Randle scored the most points (23) for the team.

#1 Giannis and the Bucks come back strong after losing against Spurs

Milwaukee Bucks v Phoenix Suns

The Milwaukee Bucks suffered a defeat in their last game on Sunday against the strong San Antonio team. They were expected to bounce off and win this game. Giannis Antetokounmpo was again the star for the night for the Bucks, he made 24 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists. Although he was not able to get any three-pointers, he scored 10-for-10 from the free throw line.

After an evenly matched first quarter, the Bucks took the lead in the second and third quarter(scoring 45 points in the third). Khris Middleton and Malcolm Brogdon also contributed by scoring 23 and 18 points respectively. Middleton made 5 rebounds and gave 7 assists. It was a complete team effort by the Bucks as all the players performed well, their bench added 38 points.

The table-topping Milwaukee team will face Miami Heat, while the Pelicans will host Portland Trail Blazers this Friday.