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Five Keys: Cavaliers at Bucks - March 22, 2015

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Key: On the Road Again

It’s back on the road for the Wine and Gold, who play the next three away from The Q before closing out the season with six of their final eight at home. (One of Cleveland’s final two road games is at the Bradley Center on April 8.)

As it stands today, Milwaukee in the Eastern Conference’s sixth seed, 1.5 games ahead of Miami. For the Bucks, the regular season can’t end fast enough as they continue to hold on to a playoff spot despite going 4-12 since the All-Star Break, including five straight losses heading into Sunday’s matchup with the Cavs.

The Wine and Gold, on the other hand, has been the hottest team in the league since mid-January and has won six of seven since falling to the Conference leading-Hawks two weeks ago. Cleveland has been locked in the East’s second playoff seed for some time now – 1.5 games up on the Bulls.

Key: Center of Attention

For much of Friday night’s home contest against the Pacers, it was an old-school battle of the bigs between Timofey Mozgov and Roy Hibbert. On Sunday, it's Moz vs. Zaza Pachulia.

The 12th-year big is the only Buck starter not averaging double-figure scoring, but he’s the squad’s second-leading rebounder and he’s been on a good roll heading into Sunday’s matchup – notching double-figure scoring in his last six games, doubling-up in four of those contests – including a 22-point, 21-rebound, 7-assist game on Friday night in Brooklyn.

Mozgov’s been just as good over that span, averaging 13.3 points over his last seven, shooting .602 from the floor. The Bucks also bring plenty of length off the bench, with John Henson – who’s blocked at last one shot in 40 of the 53 games he’s played. The Cavs counter with Tristan Thompson, who’s been the top-rebounding reserve for most of the season.

It should be an entertaining battle of the bigs on Sunday afternoon at the Bradley Center.

Key: Young Bucks

No team in the Eastern Conference has a one-two forward punch like the Cavs’ duo of LeBron James and Kevin Love. But Milwaukee has a pair of young, long frontcourt players – Giannis Anteokounmpo and Ersan Ilyasova – who can be pretty dynamic themselves. The Greek Freak, who doesn’t turn 21 until next December, has been putting up numbers for a young player that haven’t been seen since LeBron tormented the league as a 20-year-old. And Ilyasova, since being inserted into the starting lineup in late February, has notched double-figures in 12 of 13 games, averaging 13.8 over that span.

For the Cavs, LeBron is coming off another strong game – netting 13 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter of Friday’s win while Kevin Love doubled-up for the second straight game in that home victory over Indiana.

The Bucks duo has the length and youth, but the Cavs’ tandem has the hardware and experience. It’ll all get sorted out on Sunday.

Key: Getting to the Point

As previously mentioned, the Bucks have one of the longest teams in the league. None of their three frontline players is shorter than 6-10. But they also have a pair of big backcourt guys in Khris Middleton (6-7) and Michael Carter-Williams (6-6).

MCW’s numbers are down a bit from his Rookie of the Year season one year ago, but he still comes into Sunday’s matchup as Milwaukee’s leading scorer (14.7 ppg) and playmaker (7.0 apg). Carter-Williams struggled mightily in his last matchup against Cleveland – going 1-for-9 from the floor in a February 2 loss at The Q while still with the Sixers. But he’s also had huge games against the Cavs – including a 33-point outburst last season and a pair of 13-assist performances.

Kyrie Irving, the Eastern Conference’s reigning Player of the Week, didn’t have his A-game on Friday night at The Q – finishing with 13 points on 4-for-16 shooting – but he’s bounced back nicely all year, and Kyrie’s not the type of player who’s held down in two straight games.

Key: Theft Protection

The Bucks love to use their length, youth and athleticism to disrupt opponents and no team in the league causes more turnovers (17.03) than Jason Kidd’s squad.

Heading into the holidays, the Bucks were near the bottom of the NBA defensively. But since the calendar year turned to 2015, the Bucks have jumped to second in defensive rating and fourth in points scored. And Milwaukee loves to run off turnovers, ranking near the top of the league in fast break points. The Cavs have been good with taking care of the ball, committing just nine miscues in their Friday night win at The Q and averaging just over 13 per contest over their last seven.

Cleveland’s offense has been as dynamic as any in the Eastern Conference since mid-January, but they’ll face a tough test on Sunday afternoon. The Cavs will have to continue taking care of the ball as they prepare for the postseason in which every possession is critical.