Suns-Bucks Preview

Posted Jan 08 2013 2:34PM

A victory over the defending NBA champs late last month had the Milwaukee Bucks off to their best start in seven seasons.

They haven't won since, and now they're getting a new coach.

In the first game since Scott Skiles and the team parted ways, Milwaukee will try to avoid its first five-game losing streak in exactly one year Tuesday night against a Phoenix Suns club on the verge of its first 10-game road skid in 27 seasons.

Since a 104-85 victory over Miami on Dec. 29 moved them a season high-tying four games above .500, the Bucks (16-16) have gone winless while surrendering 105.8 points per game.

It's unclear if the skid led directly to the departure of Skiles, who was in his fifth season coaching the team. His tenure came to an abrupt end Monday even though the Bucks remain in playoff position in the Eastern Conference.

Assistant Jim Boylan will take over as coach for the rest of the season.

"We're not a team in dire straits ... we're expecting good things to happen," general manager John Hammond said.

It was rumored that Hammond didn't get along with Skiles, or that the locker room was fractured. Additionally, Skiles' defensive-minded style didn't seem to click with the Bucks' roster, built around scorers Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis.

"John and I met and mutually agreed that a coaching change would be in the best interest of both parties," Skiles said. "I believe this team can and will have success in the next 50 games and postseason. I want to thank the players for all of their hard work. I wish them all the best."

Milwaukee is also trying to fix its offensive struggles after getting outscored by a combined 111-76 in the second half of its last two losses versus Houston and Indiana.

"The second half has been killing us - we've been coming out with a lack of energy," Jennings said after the Bucks matched a season-low point total in Saturday's 95-80 loss at the Pacers.

Jennings may be happy to match up with Phoenix's Goran Dragic on Tuesday instead of Steve Nash, who was traded by the Suns to the Los Angeles Lakers in the offseason. Jennings' two lowest-scoring games of last season (three and five points) came against Nash, who had 28 points and 28 assists in Phoenix's season sweep of the Bucks.

The Suns (12-23) have dominated this series with 37 wins in the last 42 matchups, but they open their four-game trip with one victory in their last nine contests. Phoenix, a loser of four straight visiting East teams, last dropped 10 in a row on the road from Oct. 25-Dec. 3, 1985.

"We're in a bad spot right now," coach Alvin Gentry said after Sunday's 92-81 loss to Memphis. "Number one, we've got to stay together. We can't fragment right now. That's the easiest thing to do. Number two, we've got to play better. And number three, we've got to believe in ourselves. We're not going to play out the season or anything like that."

It could turn into that if the Suns' offense doesn't improve. Phoenix has reached 100 points just once in its last nine contests - a 111-107 loss at Minnesota on Dec. 29 - and it's averaged 80.5 with 35 total turnovers in the last two.

"You've gotta move the ball," swingman Jared Dudley said. "We're not a team that can just hold the ball ... and go give it to Kobe and LeBron and (they'll) save the day. Until we figure (that out) we'll just keep doing these interviews and keep losing."

The Suns, whose next victory will be their 2,000th, have won two straight and 16 of 21 at Milwaukee following a 107-105 victory on Feb. 7 that completed a second straight season sweep.

Phoenix's 109-93 home win last Jan. 8 sent Milwaukee to its season-high fifth consecutive defeat.

These teams will meet again in the desert next Thursday.

Bucks beat Suns 108-99 in Boylan's first game

Posted Jan 08 2013 11:37PM

MILWAUKEE (AP) Brandon Jennings glanced over and expected to see coach Scott Skiles on the end of the Milwaukee Bucks' bench. Instead, he saw Jim Boylan sitting in Skiles' old spot.

Jennings scored 29 points and the Bucks gave Boylan a win in his first game as coach with a 108-99 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night.

"I'm just hooping," Jennings said. "It was weird looking on the end of the bench and he wasn't there. I'm sure I'll get over it soon. Jim's been here for four years. It'll be good sooner or later."

The Bucks parted ways with Skiles on Monday in what was called a mutual decision, and the Bucks tapped Skiles' top assistant Boylan as a replacement.

"I almost called Jim `Scott' at one point," Jennings said. "But, hey, it's a business. I understand now. I've seen a lot."

Milwaukee's new head coach said before the game his top priority would be to get the Bucks playing well again after losing four consecutive games.

The Suns were a perfect opponent, playing poorly in the last few weeks with nine losses in the previous 10 games overall to go with a nine-game losing streak on the road.

"We can't play 40 minutes, 42 minutes or 38-minute games where we play pretty good and give ourselves an opportunity and then let it deteriorate away over a four- or five-minute period," Phoenix coach Alvin Gentry said. "That's kind of how our season has gone, really. We've just got to find a way to get better. The season is slipping away."

This is the second time Boylan has succeeded Skiles midseason. He took over the Chicago Bulls when Skiles was fired on Christmas Eve in 2007.

"I've been down this road before," Boylan said. "I won my first game against the Bucks when I was in Chicago, and it felt great. Feels great right now, too."

Jennings, who before the game said he was frustrated that he learned of the coaching change from Skiles himself instead of someone from the Bucks organization, made 9 of 15 shots and had nine assists.

"The main thing is I wasn't thinking," he said. "I was just, you know, taking whatever the defense gave me. I was able to find guys. Guys were making shots tonight."

Goran Dragic scored 21 points and Jared Dudley added 18 for Phoenix.

Larry Sanders had 10 points, eight rebounds, six blocks and three steals for Milwaukee. The Suns scored only 10 points in the paint in the second half as Sanders dominated defensively.

"Everything went down again," Marcin Gortat said of the second half. "Brandon Jennings, he just took it over, he started shooting 3s. We couldn't stop him."

The Bucks won despite an off-night from leading scorer Monta Ellis, who missed 14 of 19 shots and committed five turnovers. Ellis finished with 13 points after coming in with a 19.4 average.

Boylan made a couple of significant changes in his first game at the helm, inserting forward Ersan Ilyasova into the starting lineup and giving more minutes to rookie forward John Henson, the team's first-round draft pick.

Ilyasova had 12 points, six rebounds and four assists in 26 minutes. Henson had 12 points and 11 rebounds in 19 minutes.

"I like the way that looks right now," Boylan said of playing Henson and Ilyasova.

Milwaukee took control with a 12-3 run that spanned the end of the third and beginning of the fourth quarters. Beno Udrih had four points in the spurt and hit a 17-foot jumper with 8 minutes left to give the Bucks a 90-79 lead.

Phoenix pulled to 95-91 on a pair of free throws by Dragic with 3:49 left, but Henson scored on a dunk and Mike Dunleavy made a driving layup to extend the Milwaukee lead to 99-91 with 2:45 remaining. Phoenix never seriously threatened the rest of the game.

The Bucks used a 13-0 run, keyed by a pair of 3-pointers from Jennings and four points from Ilyasova, to open a 71-66 lead with 4:57 left in the third quarter.

Luis Scola's baseline jumper tied it at 71, but Ellis drove the lane for a basket that gave Milwaukee the lead for good, 73-71, with 3:34 left in the third.

Notes: Bucks GM John Hammond said before the game he and the team were talking about a contract extension. ... The ball stopped motionless at the back of the Phoenix rim - not stuck - with 9:24 to go in the second quarter, prompting wide grins from the Suns bench. Milwaukee won the ensuing jump ball. ... The teams meet again Jan. 17 in Phoenix.

Notebook: Bucks 108, Suns 99

Rick Braun, for NBA.com
Posted Wed Jan 09, 2013 12:14 AM - Updated Wed Jan 09, 2013 12:49 AM

THE FACTS: Brandon Jennings scored 29 points and dished out nine assists to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 108-99 victory over the Phoenix Suns Tuesday night at the BMO Harris Bradley Center in Jim Boylan's debut as Bucks coach.

Monta Ellis added 13 points, rookie John Henson had 12 points and 11 rebounds and center Larry Sanders had 10 points, eight rebounds, six blocked shots and three steals as the Bucks snapped a four-game losing streak.

Goran Dragic had 21 points and Marcin Gortat added 16 points and 14 rebounds for the Suns (12-24), who lost for the ninth time in 10 games and the ninth straight time on the road.

QUOTABLE: "Brandon was great today. He was under control. He was aggressive, yet he was looking for his teammates. He was just playing the game, which is great for him. Just go out there and play the game. It's kind of a simple statement, but shoot when you're open, pass when you're covered. I thought that's what he tried to do tonight."
-- Boylan

THE STAT: The Suns shot 63.6 percent (14 for 22) in the first quarter for 33 of their points, but just 23 for 68 (33.8 percent) and scored just 66 points over the final 36 minutes.

TURNING POINT: Sebastian Telfair's 3-pointer bounced off the rim about three times before falling through for a 33-26 lead at the first-quarter buzzer, but the Suns then missed their first nine shots in the second quarter and were never the same offensively again.

QUOTABLE II: "It was just kind of instinct. I really didn't see where the ball went. It disappeared on me. It gets the crowd energized and pumped a little bit. They loved the energy at the time."
-- Sanders on how he used his hand to shield his eyes after swatting Shannon Brown's shot deep into the stands in the final minute for his sixth block.

HOT: Bucks backup point guard Beno Udrih made 5 of 6 shots, and Jennings made 5 of 7 from behind the arc and 9 of 15 overall.

NOT: Bucks backup center Ekpe Udoh missed all five shots he took.

QUOTABLE III: "I like Larry's emotion. He and I talk about it. He's got to use it in a positive way. Larry is growing and maturing. If you think back to where Larry was this time last year and where he is today right now as a basketball player, it's amazing."
-- Boylan on Sanders' late blocked-shot celebration.

GOOD MOVE: Boylan decided to put Ersan Ilyasova back in the starting lineup at power forward and use rookie John Henson as the backup at that spot. The two combined for 24 points and 17 rebounds.

ROOKIE WATCH: Henson, the 14th overall pick, can now count on regular minutes as the backup at power forward. In his first night of that role he tallied 12 points, 11 rebounds two assist and a blocked shot. Henson is averaging 12 rebounds over his last four games.

NOTABLE: Boylan learned Monday he would replace Scott Skiles as Bucks head coach after general manager John Hammond and Skiles agreed mutually to have Skiles depart. ... Wesley Johnson's second-quarter shot from underneath the basket ended up coming to rest on the back of the rim with 9:24 left in the half. The Bucks won the ensuing jump ball at center court. ... The Bucks snapped a four-game losing streak. ... Sanders has blocked at least four shots in four straight games. ... Phoenix's Luis Scola also had a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

UP NEXT: For the Suns, Wednesday @ Boston, Friday @ Brooklyn, Saturday @ Chicago. For the Bucks, Wednesday @ Chicago, Friday vs. Detroit, Sunday @ Toronto.

• Suns: Frye, Zeller
• Bucks: Lamb, Przybilla

• Suns: Telfair
• Bucks: --

• Lead Changes: 9
• Times Tied: 3

• Arena: BMO Harris Bradley Center, Milwaukee, WI
• Officials: #43 Dan Crawford, #42 Eric Lewis, #75 Eric Dalen
• Attendance: 13014
• Duration: 2:10