Coming off a one-point win over the Chicago Bulls on Friday evening, the Sacramento Kings are back at it again on Saturday. They’ll face a Milwaukee Bucks team that ran them off the court earlier in the week.
36-year-old Zach Randolph turned back the clock against the Bulls, scoring a season-high 25 points and grabbing 13 rebounds in the win. Rookie Bogdan Bogdanovic made an impact as well, scoring a career-best 19 points on Sacramento’s bench.
After struggling early in the season, the Bucks have won 3-of-4 and are two games over .500. They currently sitting in sixth place in the Eastern Conference and the trio of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Eric Bledsoe and Khris Middleton are starting to gel.
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BETTING LINE:
Bucks by 12.5
MATCHUP TO WATCH:
Kings Offense vs. Bucks Length -- Milwaukee’s starting lineup boasts four players with incredible length and last time these teams faced off, the Kings had no answer. Giannis Antetokounmpo is a force of nature on both ends of the floor. He gets back in transition and his length causes all kinds of issues in the pick and roll. Sacramento needs to move the ball quickly, use the bounce pass and look for the easy pass.
WHERE THEY STAND:
Kings: 7-15, fifth place in Pacific
Bucks: 11-9, third place in Central
NBA
INJURY REPORT:
Kings: Justin Jackson, Malachi Richardson and Georgios Papagiannis have been assigned to the Reno Bighorns. PF Harry Giles (bilateral knee rehab) out until January.
Bucks: F Jabari Parker (knee) out, F Mirza Teletovic (knee) out, PG Matthew Dellavedova (knee) out.
THREE THINGS TO WATCH:
Don’t Fear the Deer -- Sacramento looked timid against the Bucks on Tuesday. They had no answer for Antetokounmpo, but guards Eric Bledsoe and Khris Middleton did plenty of damage as well. With all three of their scorers firing away, the Kings looked overmatched from the opening tip.
Attack the Rim -- One of the best ways to neutralize the Bucks length is to run right at them. Sacramento is 29th in the league in free throw attempts and starting point guard, De’Aaron Fox, hasn’t gone to the line in four games. If they can draw in the defense, it will open the spacing for offense to flow.
Push the Tempo -- Despite having plenty of speed at multiple positions, the Kings are 28th in the league in pace. Sacramento has won the last four games in which they’ve scored 100 or more. Pushing the tempo might help mask a lot of the team’s issues with inexperience and lack of size.
SERIES HISTORY:
Milwaukee handled the Kings handily earlier this week to take a 1-0 lead in the season series. The Bucks hold a 84-59 lead in the all-time series, but the Kings hold a slim 32-31 advantage during the Sacramento-era.