Last
night featured two of the East's best doing battle. The Knicks had held
opponents to below 100 points for 33 consecutive games, an NBA record.
The Bucks were turning heads with a fantastic record after a miserable
start to the season. But Tuesday night was Milwaukee's night to make a
statement to the league; this team is a legit contender to reach the NBA
finals. The Bucks won, 105-91.
"People
have to stand up and listen now," said Bucks guard Ray Allen.
Yeah,
they do. New York beat Portland and San Antonio last night, convincing
many that they're to be taken seriously even if they're in the lowly Eastern
conference (which really doesn't seem quite as lowly anymore). In the Knicks
defense, they are without their one and only tall defensive presence, Marcus
Camby. With Marcus around it would certainly have been harder for the likes
of Cassell and Allen to penetrate and create or score. But that wasn't
the way Milwaukee was scoring, so had Camby played the outcome might not
have changed. The Bucks hit 14 of 31 from 3-point range, and recorded 26
assists in their 40 successful shots. They scored 58 in the first half
alone, more than any team against the Knicks this season.
And
yes, Milwaukee knew about the under-100 points record New York was running
with. "Our team wanted to bust that," coach George Karl said.
The
Bucks still have little offensive game near the basket. Their entire offensive
strength revolves around the fact that Cassell, Allen and Robinson can
all shoot from outside. Drive, draw a defender, dish out, swing ball, hit
open shot. Repeat. It works.
So,
it took a while, but the Bucks are finally living up to pre-season expectations
that had the team competing to win the Central division and reach the Eastern
conference finals, and perhaps beyond. Charlotte has helped by losing more
than expected over the last few weeks. "It feels good to be in first place,"
said Glenn Robinson. It probably feels just as good to be able to say that.
Now
that Gary Payton was suspended for a game, Ray Allen now holds the NBA's
longest streak of consecutive games (325) started.
The
player rotation has been trimmed to 9 players, with Cassell, Allen, Robinson,
Scott Williams, and Mark Pope starting, and Tim Thomas, Jason Caffey, Ervin
Johnson and Lindsey Hunter off the bench.
As
long as these guys can hit their shots and not more than one of Cassell,
Allen or Robinson go cold, they can compete with every team in the league.
Look for them to battle for a spot in the Eastern conference finals.
