NEW YORK — The Brooklyn Nets hosted the Milwaukee Bucks at Barclays Center on Wednesday for the second leg of a back-to-back and lost 144-122.
For the Nets, Jalen Wilson had 21 points and 10 rebounds while Trendon Watford had 17 points and five rebounds. Dennis Smith Jr. had 14 points and Noah Clowney had 14 points.
For the Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo had 32 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists while Khris Middleton had 27 points and 10 assists. Cameron Payne had 18 points off the bench and Malik Beasley had 17 points.
In the first half, Mikal Bridges combined for 14 points in the first quarter to get the Nets off to a good start of being competitive with the juggernaut Bucks. However, once the second quarter came, Thomas and Bridges sat for the night to allow players like Jalen Wilson and Noah Clowney to get some valuable NBA experience.
In the second half, some of the younger players for the Nets, led by Smith, were able to give the Bucks a legitimate battle in the third quarter thanks to some outstanding play out of Smith and Wilson. However, in the fourth quarter, the Bucks pulled away as Brooklyn’s younger player struggled to keep up with Milwaukee’s starting unit for the entire time.
Here are your Nets player grades following Wednesday’s loss: