Don’t let the Bucks get hot is what the ancient proverbs would say, Milwaukee won their fifth straight beating Indiana Pacers, 99-85, in an impressive victory where the team used a big second half to take down the six-seeded Pacers. This is Milwaukee’s third win in their last five against playoff teams, and they’re playing at an extremely high level. Milwaukee could finish this pseudo-home stand 5-1 if they beat Minnesota Timberwolves this evening. This is only Bucks fourth win where they didn’t score 100 points.

Player of the Game: Giannis Antetokounmpo (Bucks) – Another strong game from Giannis with 21 points, eight rebounds, five assists and five steals in a classic Giannis game. I didn’t write about Wednesday’s game where he sort said ‘Fuck this, we’re winning’, and this one didn’t have that feel, rather, Antetokounmpo doing just enough on both sides to propel Milwaukee to victory. Khris Middleton having 21 as well helped things.

(Not) Player of the Game: Rashad Vaughn (Bucks) – The former first round pick continues to struggle in his second year. Vaughn got the most minutes in awhile with 25, but he didn’t play off Jason Kidd for the added confidence. He only scored two points missing four shots of his five attempted shots. Vaughn did not do much for Bucks team. We’ll see if he gets the same type of minutes against Minnesota.

Player of the Game: Paul George (Pacers) – Good night for Paul George as the Bucks continue to struggle against small forwards this season. George scored 18 points with 11 rebounds and six assists. George did what he could to carry Indiana, but he got zero support from the guys around him.

Positive: Bucks held their water then struck hard – Milwaukee did not get off to the start they wanted going down 10-0 early and trailing for the entire first half plus a little bit of the third. They started slow, but finished strong which all that matters. Milwaukee made good adjustments as the game went on with Indiana’s offense. One of the better wins for the Bucks given the slow start which hasn’t been par for the course.

Negative: Minutes were… interesting – We mentioned Vaughn getting 25 minutes. Jason Terry ended with 26 while John Henson saw 21. Those are the most minutes for those guys in quite some time. Now, Bucks were shorthanded without Mirza Teletovic and Malcolm Brogdon. We don’t know the status on either for tonight’s game which could be more curious considering Giannis played 39 on Friday night.

Next up: As mentioned, they play Minnesota on Saturday night in what should be an electric Bradley Center. Milwaukee has won five straight while Minnesota won the last 7 of 10 including a massive win against Golden State Warriors last night. Timberwolves dominated Bucks in Twin Cities around Christmas time, and at that time, Bucks were rolling so let’s hope it’s not the same story in Cream City tonight.

CHarlie.