Attendance: 20,115
Time: 2:30
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| (Getty Images / NBAE) |
The Bucks hadn't beaten the Cavs since Dec. 10, 2005. They also snapped an eight-game losing streak in Cleveland, where they had been winless since Jan. 6, 2003 - the season before LeBron James arrived.
James finished with 34 points, seven assists and seven rebounds in 44 minutes. He played the entire second half, and Cleveland's superstar nearly rallied the Cavs, who trailed 104-95 with 2:19 left after a basket by Williams.
James then converted a three-point play, and isolated defensively on Redd, he stripped Milwaukee's guard and raced down for a layup to bring Cleveland within four. A free throw by Daniel Gibson pulled the Cavs within three, but Redd, who scored 18 points in the third, dropped two free throws to put Milwaukee up 109-104.
Gibson, who scored a career-high 26, hit a late 3-pointer with 1.6 seconds left but it was way too late for Cleveland, which gave up easy baskets. Zydrunas Ilgauskas added 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Cavs, who led by 14 in the first half.
Charlie Villanueva had 17 points and Royal Ivey 15 for the Bucks, who came in 4-0 at home and 0-4 on the road.
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| Highlights from Tuesday's win at Cleveland. |
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Game highlights
Charlie Villanueva puts the game out of reach with a banked-in triple
Dan Gadzuric heaves the ball ahead to Royal Ivey
Michael Redd steals the ball and finds Royal Ivey
Shootaround: Larry Krystkowiak on simplifying the offense
Shootaround: Jim Paschke talks with Michael Redd
Larry Krystkowiak
(On stopping many streaks and keys to the win):
“It was frustrating getting down early with that deficit in the first quarter. We just hung in there. I thought our bench came in and gave us a big lift. Royal Ivey, in particular, came off and sparked us with a lot of plays. I left Charlie V (Villanuava) and Bobby (Simmons) in, those guys were exactly the definition of some of that bench support that came in. We hung in and made some big shots down the stretch and put an end to our little winless streak on the road and put an end to our losing streak to the Cavs.”
(On Bucks rebounding advantage):
“That was the thing at the top of our list. The last couple of days, we’ve been talking about it. They (Cavs) have beaten a lot of people up on the glass and we were hoping to stay close. Ilgauskas and Gooden, those two are two of the best offensive rebounders in the league. We had a short deficit at halftime and came out and had a big second half and had 15 offensive rebounds. That’s a big point in us winning this ballgame.”
(On this being a building block win for the Bucks):
“We sat around this summer, and not to beat a dead horse from last year, but we were 1-15 in the Central Division and got beat up four times playing the Cavs. It’s just not Cleveland, it’s a number of teams in our division that we would like to correct the situation a little bit.”
(On the game):
“I thought we came out flat in the first quarter. They took it at us and they were on a pace to score 40 first-quarter points. I think we kind of got tired of getting hit in the mouth and we fought back and some energy carried through. There’s not that much of a margin on the road when you’re playing against the Eastern Conference champs. You can’t come in and have a lack of energy. We started to get a positive vibe out there and things started going better.”
(On Charlie Villanueva coming off the bench):
“He’s been a big lift in the last two or three ballgames. He may be better coming off the bench, I’m not sure. He’s sure soaking it up right now and we’ve always known that Charlie V. can score, he’s one of the more talented big guys in the league. The thing that he is doing that’s making it hard to keep him off the floor right now, he’s doing a great job of distributing the ball and he’s doing a great job of defending and rebounding. He had nine boards, it’s exactly what we’re looking for. He’s really stepped up.”
Michael Redd
(On ending many streaks and importance of this game):
“We broke the road losing streak, the Cleveland losing streak, yeah, we knew this was a pretty important game. They have been playing well at home and it was time for us to translate what we’ve been doing at home and what we’ve doing in practice to the road. Tonight, we did a terrific job of pretty much playing the whole game. We started off pretty bad, but we re-grouped and we got 20+assists, which was key.”
(On the win):
“It means a lot. Anytime you can beat Cleveland, the defending Eastern Conference champs at home, it speaks volumes. Especially early in the season, it give the team confidence. We knew they were going to come out firing. LeBron (James) has been playing brilliant basketball. He’s the catalyst to their team and we just tried to contain him as much as we could. As you saw, it’s hard to do, but we did a terrific job overall tonight.”
(On getting 20 free throws):
“I was just attacking, just attacking. I was seeing how the flow of the game was being called, and I was just being aggressive. I still don’t have a rhythm on my jump shot, so I am getting to the line is getting me a rhythm a little bit. That’s going to be the key for me.”
(On his third quarter):
“I knew how Cleveland has defended me in the past. I wanted to defer a little bit tonight and find and get my teammates going and I fit in where I fit in. It (third quarter) just happened, the flow, and I just took advantage of how they were guarding me. If they were going to guard me loosely, then attack. If they were going to guard me tight, just give it up and make a simple play.”
Mo Williams
(On the games):
“We came into the game with a big opportunity. Everything worked out for us and we played well. Down the stretch, we played well on both ends, even though they (Cavs) got some breaks at the end. We still kept our composure. We managed the game real, real well and, down the stretch, you’re not going to score every time, but as long as you get a shot up and not a turnover, and if you get a stop, that’s even bigger.”
(On slow start):
“You’re down 10-12 (points) and you want to get back to the basics. Just make simple plays and get back in the game. We knew there was a lot of basketball left, and we just stuck together and we did it one basket at a time. They (Cavs) were hitting threes, three, three, three, you would be worried if they were penetrating and getting layups. They were hitting threes, a few of them were contested, and anybody is not going to hit threes all night.”
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Photos by David Liam (NBAE/Getty Images)
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