CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP)—Milwaukee Bucks coach Scott Skiles knows not to get too excited about his team’s 112-92 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats on Friday night.
There are tougher challenges ahead if his team wants to make a serious run at the playoffs.
“You know, we weren’t playing the Celtics,” Skiles said after the Bucks pulled within a half-game of the New York Knicks in the battle for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
They certainly weren’t.
The NBA-worst Bobcats have now lost 15 games this season by 20 or more points.
Luc Mbah a Moute scored 13 of his 20 points in the second half as the Bucks scored 72 points inside the paint against the outmanned Bobcats.
Ersan Ilyasova had 15 points and Drew Goodson added 14 points and 12 rebounds as six Bucks players scored in double digits. Monta Ellis chipped in with 13 points and Brandon Jennings added 12.
“We got a lot of offensive rebounds (13) and I think our guards were good tonight, just knowing when to pass the ball and just driving in there dishing it off,” Mbah a Moute said.
The Bucks had no problem exploiting the smaller Bobcats, who were playing without center Gana Diop and forward Eddy Najera, who were injured, and the recently waived Boris Diaw.
Most of Milwaukee’s shots were uncontested in the lane. The Bucks shot 53 percent for the game.
“I thought we did a pretty good job of getting in there whether it was through a pass or an offensive rebound,” swingman Mike Dunleavy said. “We just shared the ball real well. It was a big offensive night for us.”
The Bucks had 31 assists, marking the fifth time in six games they’ve had at least 30 in a game.
“When the ball is moving and guys are knocking down shots, it’s fun and it’s easy,” Dunleavy said. “Hopefully we can keep it up.”
The Bucks won despite a season-high 29 points from Gerald Henderson.
The third-year pro from Duke was 13 of 19 from the field for the Bobcats, who have lost seven of their last nine games and are 7-38 on the season.
“It wasn’t just their bigs,” Henderson said. “We gave them some penetration and they ran a lot of back cuts. They just got a lot of layups we didn’t cover. It was just bad night for us defensively. We’ll look at the tape and make adjustments. We just kind of have to forget about this one.”
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