The last time the Milwaukee Bucks won a game at Utah against the Utah Jazz, was in the season opener in 2001. This is way back when Ray Allen was still a Buck. Since then the Bucks have never won a game in Utah. Today the Bucks Big 3 (Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, and Jrue Holiday) led the team to their first victory in 21 years at the Vivint Smart Home Arena in Utah.
The game came down to the last minute and would have remained a 3 point game if Donovan Mitchell made a bad foul and put Khris Middleton on the free-throw line. The only players that scored in double digits for the Bucks were their Big 3. Giannis had 30 points and 15 rebounds to lead all scorers, Jrue Holiday had 29 points and 7 assists while Khris Middleton had a quiet 23 points.
The Jazz had 4 players in double digits but only 2 with 20+ points. Donovan Mitchell and Mike Conley both had 29 points in the game. They got their teammates involved as well and had 8 and 7 assists respectively. Rudy Gobert was huge in the game as well and had 18 points and 14 rebounds. The 4th Jazz player in double digits was Royce O’Neal who had 12 points and 7 rebounds. But it wasn’t enough against the Bucks.
The game was close throughout and both teams switched leads throughout the game. Giannis is leading the league in the 4th quarter points average (8.7) and had 11 points in the 4th quarter. The return of Brook Lopez was great for the Bucks as well as they get back their anchor on defence and rim protector. Lopez has been out of action since opening night due to a back injury.
The Milwaukee Bucks take back the 2 seeds from the Philadelphia 76ers after the win. They are now just 2 games behind the 1 seed Miami Heat and have a chance to be at the top of the Eastern Conference when the regular season ends. The loss puts the Jazz’s record at 42-26, similar to the 5 seed Dallas Mavericks. Regardless of who is the 5 seed or 4 seed the first-round matchup is probably going to be the Mavericks vs the Jazz.
