Sixers Drop 6th Straight in Loss to Bucks, But Defensive Play Impresses Brett Brown

BOX SCORE

Brett Brown has said many times the Sixers' "bread is buttered" on the defensive end.
 
His team did well in that department Saturday night. They held the playoff-bound Milwaukee Bucks to just 44 percent from the field. They also held a six-point lead at the half.
 
But in the second half, their offense was toast in a 90-82 loss to the Bucks at the Wells Fargo Center (see Instant Replay).
 
The Sixers lost their sixth straight while Milwaukee clinched their spot in the playoffs thanks to the Bulls' loss to the Nets. The Bucks currently hold the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference.
 
They looked the part on the defensive end, holding the shorthanded Sixers under 30 percent from the floor in the second half.
 
"The third period, [the Bucks] did a great job of coming out and really just playing a playoff type of defense," Brown said. "I think just the switching length. When you study how they play, it's effectively a zone. They just switch off on everything."
 
The trio of Dario Saric, Richaun Holmes and T.J. McConnell combined to shoot 15 of 30 from the field. Conversely, fellow starters Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot and Justin Anderson along with sixth man Nik Stauskas shot a combined 8 for 33.
 
The Sixers are beleaguered by injuries and they just played their 80th game of the season. Alex Poythress, signed from the D-League less than a week ago, played almost 24 minutes Saturday night. Holmes, who didn't seem like he'd ever see the court at the beginning of the season with the logjam at center, played a team-high 36 minutes.
 
They faced an uphill battle against a team that knew a win secured their spot in the playoffs. Still, the Sixers refused to make excuses.
 
"The whole second half we were flat," Stauskas said. "We didn't bring energy. We weren't making shots and then defensively we had a few missed assignments and what not that led to easy buckets for them.
 
"They really showed they're a playoff team today. They executed when it counted and pulled out a W."
 
For a team and a coach that has to constantly try to find silver linings, the team's defense was solid. The Sixers held Milwaukee to almost 14 points below their average.
 
Coming into the game, the Bucks were tied for 10th in the league, shooting 37 percent from three. The Sixers held them to just 22 percent from distance.
 
"If you said you're gonna hold that team to 90 points, you'd be thrilled," Brown said. "I really have my eye on, can we finish in the top 15 [defensively], which is really a playoff mentality we're trying to deliver and grow that up to [top] 10 next year … maybe single digits next year.
 
"We're almost there. It's the only goal that we've had since Day 1."
 
They won't make excuses, but they have plenty. Especially on the offensive end of the floor.
 
Joel Embiid was scoring at a prolific rate, but his season was cut to just 31 games. The team has also been without second-leading scorer Robert Covington for the last six games (the Sixers' six-game losing streak started with his injury). Saric, whose big second half has boosted his Rookie of the Year candidacy, has been strapped with a 24-minute restriction as he deals with plantar fasciitis in his left foot.
 
Not to mention they've been without the services of No. 1 overall pick Ben Simmons, as he recovers from a Jones fracture in his right foot.
 
"There's not a team in the NBA that's gone through injuries like we have," McConnell, who recorded his fifth double-double this season, said. "We can't make excuses. We know what's happened and we just gotta keep fighting and playing together and finish out the season strong."
 
The Sixers have one thing in spades: Hope. A team with Embiid, Simmons, Saric, Covington and another lottery pick(s) could be a lot of fun next year. They may also win another game or two.
 
"Where do I begin?" Brown said when asked about the offensive impact of a healthy Embiid next season. "The thing I get most excited about Joel is, he has such a long ways to go. He is just scratching the surface of what ultimately he's going to be."
 
Nearly tripling last season's win total, the hope is the Sixers are just scratching the surface of what they can be as a team.