Game 64 Preview: Nets (22-41) at Milwaukee Bucks (29-33)

In order for the undermanned Nets to win, Gerald Green is going to need to have a monster game. At least we know we he can do it.

There's just three games left this season for the Nets, and only four for the Milwaukee Bucks. I guess that's a good thing for both teams as the Nets can't wait to start next season at the brand-new Barclays Center in Brooklyn while the Bucks can't wait to eliminate the terrible taste in their mouths from their epic collapse this season. Just two weeks ago, Milwaukee was only a half-game behind the Knicks for the 8th-seed in the East but after losing five of six games since then, they are three games behind the current 8th-place 76ers. A three-game deficit with four games remaining looks to be too big to come back from so Milwaukee's once-promising playoff hopes have diminished incredibly.

Background on Milwaukee

As mentioned above, the Bucks are a team with a lot of potential but have been dreadful down the stretch of this season. They did get much more explosive and athletic on both offense and defense by trading for Monta Ellis and Ekpe Udoh from the Warriors at the trade deadline. However, the addition of these guys helped the team early on but has been disastrous of late as the defense has been simply horrendous during their late-season swoon. Milwaukee has given up at least 97 points in their last six games (1-5 during that span) highlighted by allowing 121 in a loss to Washington and 118 in a loss to Indiana. They may be a hard-to-stop offensive team, but the Bucks are brutally inept on defense which should bode well for the undermanned Nets.

Probable Lineups

NJN- Gaines (PG), Brooks (SG), Wallace (SF), Humphries (PF), Petro (C)

MIL- Jennings (PG), Ellis (SG), Delfino (SF), Mbah a Moute (PF), Ilyasova (C)


Three Keys to a Nets Win

1. Guard the perimeter tenaciously, especially with Ellis and Jennings

2. Win the rebounding battle, don't let Ilyasova get 25 rebounds like two meetings ago.

3. Don't just settle for 3-pointers, drive to the paint and get fouled