Augustin's growing up fast. (via biddybb.com)

Bucks (6-8 3-5 road) @ Bobcats (3-8, 3-5 home)

Gametime: 6:00 p.m. central time

Injuries:

Bucks: Michael Redd (sprained ankle) has missed ten straight games.

Bobcats: Jason Richardson (knee surgery) is out.

07/08 Series:

Nov. 2: @Bobcats 102 Bucks 99

Dec. 22: @Bucks 103 Bobcats 99

Jan. 6: @Bobcats 93 Bucks 89

08/09 Advanced Stats:

Bucks: Offense: 23rd (103.0 points/100 possessions) Defense: 10th (104.2) Pace: 15th (91.3)

Bobcats: Offense: 26st (101.2 points/100 possessions) Defense: 23rd (107.4)  Pace: 28th (86.8)

Three points:

• Hey, D.J. Rookie point guard D.J. Augustin is coming off his two best games as a pro, averaging 23.5 points, 5.5 assists, 3.5 rebounds, and 0.5 turnovers on 51.4 % shooting. He hit 7-11 from outside last night against the Hawks. He appears to be a pretty quick study after struggling early on. In his first two games in the NBA, Augustin averaged 8.0 points, 3.5 assists, 0.5 rebounds, and 4.0 turnovers on 33.3 % shooting.

• Slow 'cats. A day after holding the top-scoring team (minus its top two scorers) in the NBA to 87 points, the Bucks face the league's lowest-scoring unit. The Bobcats are 26th in offensive efficiency. They also contrast New York as one of the league's slowest teams (28th in pace) despite having some individuals who can run, like Raymond Felton, Gerald Wallace, and Augustin.

• Weekend winners. The Bobcats are 0-7 from Sunday-Thursday but 3-1 on Friday-Saturday, with wins over the Heat, Hornets, and Jazz, all at home. They did lose in Atlanta last night.

Coverage:

Bucks.com / Queen City Hoops / Rufus on Fire

Max Zaslofsky in his day. (via NBA Encyclopedia)

Knicks (6-5, 2-3 road) @ Bucks (5-8, 2-3 home)

Gametime: 7:30 p.m. central time

Injuries:

Knicks: Jared Jeffries (fractured fibula) is out and Danilo Gallinari (sore back) hasn't played in November.

Bucks: Michael Redd (sprained ankle) has missed nine straight games. Charlie Villanueva (hamstring) has missed four in a row.

07/08 Series:

Nov. 30: @Knicks 91 Bucks 88

Feb. 9: Knicks 99 @Bucks 98

April 1: @Bucks 119 Knicks 115 OT

08/09 Advanced Stats:

Knicks: Offense: 14th (106.2 points/100 possessions) Defense: 20th (106.9) Pace: 1st (98.2)

Bucks: Offense: 21st (103.0 points/100 possessions) Defense: 15th (105.7)  Pace: 18th (90.6)

Three points:

• The wrong stuff. Here is a list of players who are averaging more blocks per game than the Knicks as a team this season: Dwight Howard, Andrew Bynum, Marcus Camby, Greg Oden, Chris Kaman, Kendrick Perkins, Dwyane Wade, Ronny Turiaf, Spencer Hawes, Tyrus Thomas, Samuel Dalembert, Shawn Marion, Danny Granger, Rasheed Wallace, Tyson Chandler, Andrei Kirilenko, Al Jefferson, Emeka Okafor, Al Horford, Ben Wallace, Nene Hilario, Tim Duncan, Brandan Wright, Elton Brand, Jermaine O'Neal, Yao Ming, Andris Biedrins. The Knicks block 1.5 shots per game. The entire team. 1.5 per game... and that's rounding up. The Bucks average more than twice as many, 3.3, and the Bucks rank 28th in the NBA.

• Point's points. Guess who is the only Buck to score in double figures in each game played this season (not including Michael Redd, who has only played four games). It's not Richard Jefferson or Luke Ridnour. And it certainly isn't Andrew Bogut or even Luc Mbah a Moute. The answer is Ramon Sessions. If that doesn't surprise you, maybe this will: The assist king hasn't hit 10 assists even once this year.
  
• In the Knick of time. Mike D'Antoni has pushed the pace in New York so much that the Knicks are the fastest team in the NBA a season removed from finishing exactly in the middle of the league in pace. Streetball-oriented Jamal Crawford appears to be one of the chief beneficiaries of the new brand of basketball in the Big Apple; he leads the NBA with 35 three-pointers. He's a big part of an offense that leads the NBA in points per game (105.3) and three-pointers per game (10.8). While dangerous offensively, you won't mistake the current Knicks for the Suns of years past.  They rank a solid but unspectacular 14th in offensive efficiency.

Update: The Knicks traded away Jamal Crawford and Zach Randolph (and Mardy Collins) in separate deals today. Al Harrington, Tim Thomas, and Cuttino Mobley are the newest Knicks.

Coverage:

Bucks.com / Posting and Toasting / Knickerblogger / The Knicks Blog

The Bucks may have headed west, but their play went mostly southward in a 114-105 loss in Denver. They performed like an overmatched team missing key parts in a tough environment against a very good team, which should probably be expected since that was precisely their predicament.

Not all was negative though, as Joe Alexander (14 points, 4 rebounds, 3 blocks, 2 steals, 2-4 on three-pointers) led the Bucks in minutes and delivered his finest game as a pro, proving first-round picks can succeed in Milwaukee too. Andrew Bogut however, (2 points, 3 rebounds, 4 turnovers, 4 fouls) didn't represent the first overall pick contingent very proudly.

Three Bucks

• Joe Alexander.  Buried not too far down in the rubble that was the Bucks tonight was this shiny nugget of goodness. The rookie harnessed some excess athleticism and energy with three mighty blocks in the first half. Alexander showed off a series of offensive moves too, swishing a pair of jumpers on consecutive plays in the second quarter. The forced airball three with the Bucks down by nine with just over a minute left looked a bit "rookie," but he's most certainly growing.
  
• Charlie Bell. Bell carried the Bucks in spurts, particularly during a slow, sloppy second quarter in which he scored 13 points. He filled in at starting shoot guard again with a pretty nice, Michael Redd-ish 25/3/2 and 3-6 from outside.
  
• Austin Croshere. He equaled Carmelo Anthony's 17 points in just 17 minutes off the bench, mostly in "garbage time" that turned briefly into a real game thanks in part to Croshere's strong play.
  

Three Numbers

• +2. Joe Alexander's differential in 31 minutes.
  
• 48. The Bucks hacked the Nuggets into 48 free throws attempts, 26 in the first half alone. The fouls not only gave Denver easy points, but kept important Bucks sidelined. Linas Kleiza made 13-15 from the line himself.
  
• 27. Dahntay Jones finished with the most minutes among Denver's starters, with 27. That's indicative of how easily the Nuggets cruised to victory.
  

Three Good

• Getting closer. You might recall that the Bucks got blown out a lot last year. And while all losses count the same, it is refreshing to see the Bucks playing competitively even in losses. Their opening-night loss in Chicago by 13 remains their worst result and the only other double-digit loss was in Boston by 12. This game seemed very lost for a very long time, but then the scoreboard showed 110-100 with three and change to play, providing at least a few moments of hope down the stretch.
  
• The bench. Austin Croshere, nice. It was largely a battle of the benches for much of the second half when the Bucks outscored the Nuggets by five. If the likes of Alexander and Croshere can contribute to some extent when Michael Redd and Charlie Villanueva return, the bench might not be such a sore spot after all.
• No average Joe. Alexander quadrupled his season block total and doubled his season steal total. He also showed some nice two-way potential, elevating not only on the shot blocks but on his pretty jumper.
  

Three Bad

• Rocky start. The Bucks descended on Denver in good form, but the starters struggled early on. Consider: Luke Ridnour had two fouls and two turnovers before his first assist. Charlie Bell opened a quick 1-5 from the field, including a straightaway airball three-pointer. Richard Jefferson managed to pick up three fouls in under four minutes. Luc Mbah a Moute was solid until he also picked up two early fouls, forcing him to the bench. Andrew Bogut meanwhile knocked knees with Nene, sidelining him before taking a shot. The rocky start saw the second unit  playing major minutes, and Bucks behind early.
• A foul showing. Somehow no Buck fouled out, but the team amassed an absurd 38 fouls, a sure recipe for disaster. Andrew Bogut continued a sort of crumbly early campaign by picking up bad fouls high and low, scoring two points in 16 minutes, while being thoroughly outplayed by Nene Hilario (13 points on 6-8 and six rebounds in 21 minutes). Bogut's performance against the Celtics feels like a lot longer than three days ago.
  
• We've got the Jazz. Home is probably feeling like even more than 1,043 miles away for the Bucks. And they don't move in the right compass direction from Denver either. The Bucks head to Salt Lake City to face another Western power on Wednesday night in yet another back-to-back. To make matters worse, they face the Jazz, who are undefeated at home.
  

That is a logo. (via sports-logos-screensavers)

Bucks (5-6, 3-3 road) @ Nuggets (6-4, 3-1 home)

Gametime: 8:00 p.m. central time (FSN-W)

Injuries:

Bucks: Michael Redd (ankle) has missed seven straight games. Charlie Villanueva (hamstring) has missed two in a row.

Nuggets: Steven Hunter (knee), Chris Andersen (rib), and Chucky Atkins (knee) are out.

07/08 Series:

Dec. 26: @Nuggets 125 Bucks 105

Feb 23: @Bucks 115 Nuggets 109

08/09 Advanced Stats:

Bucks: Offense: 24th (102.5 points/100 possessions) Defense: 10th (103.7) Pace: 4th (95.3)

Nuggets: Offense: 25th (102.2 points/100 possessions) Defense: 6th (100.7)  Pace: 22nd (90.0)

Three points:

• Hilario no laughing matter. Chauncey Billups and Carmelo Anthony will lead the headlines, but Nene Hilario leads the NBA in field goal percentage, at 64.1 %. The Brazilian is posting career highs in points (14.7), rebounds (7.3), free-throw percentage (.744), field goal percentage (.641) and blocks (1.8). Like Bogut last year, Hilario's big jump comes in shot-blocking, doubling last year's 0.9 average. He's also historically performed well against Milwaukee, with averages of 12.4 points and 7.0 rebounds on 69.8 % from the field in eight career games against the Bucks.

• Billups living up to billing. In dealing away Allen Iverson for Chauncey Billups, the Nuggets figured to have a more steady, classic starting point guard. And Denver is firing on all cylinders, 5-1, since the blockbuster trade. Some of Billups' numbers suggest he has taken on some of Iverson's aggressiveness on both sides of the ball, too. Since suiting up with the Nuggets on Nov. 7, Billups is averaging 19.5 points, 7.2 free throw attempts, and 1.8 steals per game. Those stats are the best he's ever posted. The Nuggets' fast pace only accounts for so much of the increases. In Denver, Billups has a better individual pure scorer, Carmelo Anthony, than he had in Detroit. But the Nuggets certainly lack the all-around offensive depth of Detroit, meaning the point guard is likely to continue to assume greater scoring responsibilities. In any event, Ramon Sessions and Luke Ridnour will have their hands full on both sides of the ball tonight.

• A fine line. Three Bucks rank in the top 50 in the NBA in free throws made. Richard Jefferson (16th, 50 ftm) is probably the obvious one. The other two? Ramon Sessions (42nd, 36 ftm) and Luc Mbah a Moute (45th, 35 ftm). That aggressiveness you perceive from them? It's lovely reality.
  

Coverage:

Pickaxe and Roll / The Nugg Doctor

• Thank you to Hoops Addict for releasing the Blogger MVP/ROY Rankings, Version 1.0, Volume 2008-09.
• As Frank noted, the NBA disciplined Kevin Garnett and Andrew Bogut for their roles in the slapping sequence. KG was suspended for one game and Andrew Bogut's technical was upgraded to a flagrant foul penalty one.
• Standing 5-6, Milwaukee is well on its way to salvaging a solid start despite an extremely difficult early schedule. Frank explores exactly how the Bucks might survive a brutal November.
• Brett Boyer at The Bratwurst attempts to justifiy how Dan Gadzuric took the last shot in the overtime loss to the Celtics. The problem was less about who took the shot, but where the shot was taken. Gadz played well, but the Bucks needed a three. If Sessions couldn't get open, how about Joe Alexander? He did hit his only three in the game.
  
• Known for preferring seasoned vets on the floor to the youngsters, JS Online's Tom Enlund writes Scott Skiles is running with the rookies in Milwaukee.
• InsideHoops interviews Richard Jefferson in MSG on Nov. 2.
• Empty The Bench ranks the aforementioned Jefferson one of the NBA's most depressing players of 2008. A bit harsh, honestly. By many measures, Jefferson is a hugely positive contributor thus far in Milwaukee.
  
• Skeets at BDL reports Charlie Villanueva won the first ever winner of the Bald And The Beautiful title by Eagle Snacks. Charlie will receive a trophy and $1,500 to benefit the National Alopecia Areata Foundation.
• Writing for TrueHoop, Kevin Arnovitz revisits draft day in 2005, when the Bucks held the first overall pick and chose Andrew Bogut.
• Speaking of the Aussie, Bogut promises to blog on his newly updated website.
• Basketbawful delivers a series of Luc Richard Mbah a Moute anagrams.  (via TrueHoop)
• Power Ranking the Bucks:
  
  • Bloggers: 21st
  • Ball Don't Lie: 18th
  • SI.com: 18th
  • NBA.com: 16th
  • Marc Stein: 17th
  • John Hollinger: 18th

The Bucks faced the defending champions without two regular starters, and a third was unjustifiably ejected in crunch crime. Missing three of Milwaukee's best, the Bucks nonetheless took the Celtics into overtime, where they came tantalizingly close before falling just short in a classic at the Bradley Center, 102-97.

Milwaukee used an exhilarating fourth quarter run to come back a 12-point deficit, capped by Luke Ridnour's pretty lay-in to force overtime. Andrew Bogut was ejected late in the fourth quarter after receiving his second technical, the last one because his hand inadvertently came down on Kevin Garnett's face, prompting KG to weakly punch Bogut in the forehead area. With Charlie Bell also ailing, the Bucks were without Bogut, Bell, Michael Redd, and Charlie Villanueva. Not surprisingly, they ran out of offensive firepower during bonus basketball, totaling just four points in the five minutes. Still, they had a chance to tie down by three, but a broken play resulted in Dan Gadzuric's missed two-point attempt, as each team made just one overtime field goal.

Three Bucks

• Andrew Bogut. Bogut scored four of the team's first six points on a pair of pretty hooks to help give the Bucks a 6-0 lead. With nearly everyone else struggling to score against a suffocating defense, Bogut led an offensive charge that piqued in the fourth quarter. The only thing that could stop the Aussie were the officials, who sent him to the locker room after he absorbed a punch to the face by Kevin Garnett, who, by the way, Bogut outscored (20-15) and outrebounded (9-7) despite an early trip to the showers.
• Luke Ridnour. For the second straight night, the pair of point guards make it here. We'll start with Ridnour, who took his late-game heroics turn a day after Sessions nailed a game-tying three to force overtime. This time, it was Ridnour who drove to the basket for a scooping layup to tie the game at 97 and force overtime. Ridnour was absolutely excellent from the field (5-7), outside (3-4), and the line (6-7).
  
• Ramon Sessions. The point guard's assist numbers aren't remarkably high this year, but he continues to show the amazing court vision that produced gaudy assist totals last Spring. He also is limiting mistakes quite wonderfully for a young point guard; he has just five turnovers in his last five games and has converted 24-30 (.800) free throws in that span. He couldn't find his shot (5-17) against an active Boston defense, but Sessions made plenty of positive contributions anyway. Last season there was much talk about whether Rajon Rondo (0-1, 2 points, 6 assists) could start at point guard on a champion. He proved doubters wrong. Does anyone doubt the Bucks' backup couldn't do the same, given the right pieces around him?
  

Three Numbers

• 34. Milwaukee scored 34 glorious points in the fourth quarter to come back from a 12-point deficit and force overtime. They hit 11 free throws in that period and were aggressive throughout. The Celtics are the top defensive team out there, and the Bucks ran roughshod over them in the fourth despite being without Redd, Villanueva, Bell, and then Bogut following his ejection. That works.
• 9. The Celtics racked up nine blocked shots compared to the Bucks' four. Richard Jefferson's emphatic rejection of Kendrick Perkins in the fourth quarter was nice, but Garnett's scintillating stuff of Sessions in overtime may have been the best of the bunch. Garnett led the way with four blocks and Perkins added three. Nine also stands for the number of field goals Pierce attempted, an impressively low number considering he netted 28 points.
  
• 38. The Bucks made 30-38 free throw attempts. The Celtics did a little better, hitting 32-36, but Milwaukee was very aggressive against a very good defense. The free throws helped the Bucks hang around despite shooting just 31-85 (.365) from the field.
  

Three Good

• Bradley's Centers. Facing the league's stoutest defense, Bogut delivered a season-high 20 points. His assertiveness helped push big men like Kendrick Perkins, Glen Davis, Leon Powe, and Garnett into foul trouble, and the latter into emotional problems. Bogut was fouled on the play of the confrontation with Garnett and his ejection, leaving the Celtics to pick any player to shoot the free throws. They chose Dan Gadzuric, who calmly sunk both important free throws to draw the Bucks within three at 83-86. Gadzuric played well the rest of the way, even winning the overtime tip against Garnett, and slamming home a dunk to give the Bucks a 97-96 lead. In all, the centers did a fabulous job against Boston's usually smoldering and smutthering interior defense.
  
• Bucks' pluck. This is very different than luck. Luck is having good fortune purely by chance. Pluck refers to resourcefulness and courage, making one's own good fortune in a sense. And pluck is what these Bucks possess, a trait that makes them inherently watchable, even in losses like tonight. He might be a Prince, but Luc Richard Mbah a Moute plays with the rugged determination of a commoner. Suffering an 0-4 start from the field, he swished a jumper and then sprinted to steal the ensuing inbounds pass. Falling out of bounds, he delivered the pass to Sessions, who drew a foul and got to the free throw line, a place where the point guard spends a fair amount of time. Mbah a Moute made another huge steal and falling-out-of-bounds save during the team's fourth quarter run. The tight game proved the Bucks aren't only plucky either; these guys can play against anyone, champions included.
• The youth is here. The Bucks figured to have serious depth problems coming into this season, yet here they were tonight, without Redd, Villanueva, Bell, and Bogut down the stretch, forcing the Celtics into overtime. Youngsters Sessions, Mbah a Moute, and Alexander are coming along quite nicely, to say the least.
  

Three Bad

• In the 30's. While I'm not talking about the near-freezing temperatures outside the Bradley Center at gametime, I am referring to something cold: The Bucks' first half offense. For the third consecutive game, the offense couldn't crack 40 first-half points. Against the Spurs they scored 37, then 31 against Grizzlies, and finally 38 versus the Celtics. Improbably, the Bucks won the first two and almost pulled another victory tonight. We know Michael Redd and Charlie Villanueva don't usually bring a lot of defense, but their offensive dynamism and outside shooting ability was missed, especially in the waning moments of overtime when, down by three, the Bucks attempted an... awkward two-point floating-type shot by Gadzuric? I mean, I know Gadz made the team's only field in overtime, but still. That leads us to...
  
• Three, it's a magic number. The Bucks staged another captivating double-digit second half comeback, but unlike against the Wizards, Spurs, and Grizzlies, didn't quite pull out a win. Not to get greedy, considering they incredibally pushed the champs into overtime playing shorthanded, but... The Bucks could have forced double-overtime with a three-pointer, but chose instead to feed Gadzuric for a ten-footer with just a few second left. That was an unfitting, anticlimactic finish to dramatic game. Also, four points in overtime isn't likely to get the job done.
  
• Boston T Party. This isn't a Bucks' bad. Bogut undeservedly picked up his second technical after unintentionally making contact with KG's face, and the Celtics were a bit chippy all night. Doc Rivers picked up the first technical and Perkins, Powe, and KG added a few more to the Celtics' NBA-leading 19 technicals coming into the game. Garnett, who fouled out in overtime, should have been kicked out after umm, bopping Bogut in the face.
  

Shareef retired before the season. (via Amazon)

Bucks (4-5) @ Grizzlies (3-6)

Gametime: 7:00 p.m. central time (FSN-W)

Lineups:

Bucks: Luke Ridnour / Charlie Bell / Richard Jefferson / Luc Richard Mbah a Moute / Andrew Bogut

Grizzlies: Mike Conley / O.J. Mayo / Rudy Gay / Darrell Arthur / Marc Gasol

Injuries:

Bucks: Michael Redd (ankle) has missed five straight games and is day-to-day.  Charlie Villanueva pulled his hamstring on Wednesday and is also listed as day-to-day.

Grizzlies: None.

07/08 Series:

Nov. 14: @Bucks 102 Grizzlies 99

Feb. 5: Bucks 102 @Grizzlies 97

08/09 Advanced Stats:

Bucks: Offense: 24th (102.1 points/100 possessions) Defense: 11th (103.6) Pace: 17th (91.0)

Grizzlies: Offense: 28th (97.9/100 possessions) Defense: 13th (104.1)  Pace: 5th (94.4)

Three points:

• Passing (to) the Bucks. The Bucks have received a lot of positive press for their assist numbers, ranking sixth in the NBA with 21.3 per game. Like the Bucks, the Grizzlies have a two-headed point guard attack, with Mike Conley and Kyle Lowry. Unlike the Bucks, the Grizzlies rank last in the NBA in assists, averaging 15.8. They are the only team in the league with more turnovers than assists, resulting in a last-place, epically bad 0.95 assist/turnover ratio as a team. That's not the fault of the point guards however, as Conley (2.43) and Lowry (2.00) take care of the ball pretty well. The worst offenders are Marc Gasol (0.36) and Rudy Gay (0.48).
• Mayo-days. O.J. Mayo leads the Grizzlies in points (20.6), steals (1.3), and three-point percentage (.426). Those specific numbers are actually pretty similar to Richard Jefferson's (18.4 points, 0.9 steals, and .452 three-pointers) in the early going. Not bad for a rookie who just became old enough to drink alcohol a week and a half ago.
  
• Grizzly cubs. Mayo is just one three rookies who see major court time. In fact, 3/5 of their starting lineup (Mayo, Gasol, Arthur) are rooks. Check out the ages of the team's top seven players in minutes per game: Mayo (21), Gay (22), Gasol (23), Warrick (26), Conley (21), Lowry (22), Arthur (20).
  

Coverage:

Bucks.com Gameday / 3 Shades of Blue / Beyond The Arc

It's time for a Bucks win. (via leisuretimefamilyfun)

Spurs (2-4) @ Bucks (3-5)

Gametime: 7:00 p.m. central time (FSN-W)

Lineups:

Bucks: Luke Ridnour / Charlie Bell / Richard Jefferson / Charlie Villanueva / Andrew Bogut

Spurs: George Hill / Roger Mason / Ime Udoka / Tim Duncan / Kurt Thomas

Injuries:

Bucks: Michael Redd (ankle) has missed four straight games and is day-to-day.

Spurs: Tony Parker (ankle) and Manu Ginobili (ankle) are out.

07/08 Series:

Nov. 11: @Spurs 113 Bucks 88

March 1: Spurs 96 @Bucks 94

08/09 Advanced Stats:

Bucks: Offense:  24th (102.0 points/100 possessions) Defense: 14th (104.1)  Pace: 14th (92.4)

Spurs: Offense: 9th (108.0/100 possessions) Defense: 27th (112.2)  Pace: 28th (86.8)

Three points:

• Stars from afar. While Redd is expected to be confined to the sidelines again, the Spurs can relate to missing star players. Without Manu Ginobili, and now Tony Parker, the Spurs are looking for new offensive options. Roger Mason has provided a lift offensively, averaging 15.1 points and hitting 51.9 % from outside. Yet the team's historically dominant defense has been the problem so far this season. San Antonio ranks 9th in offensive efficiency but a stunningly bad 27th in defensive efficiency.
• No "D" in San Antonio Spurs. Both clubs rank in the top ten in three-point shooting, but the Spurs allow opponents to shoot an amazing 41.0 % from beyond the arc while the Bucks hold three-point shooters to just 28.0 %, good for third in the NBA. That's a major reversal from last year, when the Spurs ranked third in three-point percentage defense and the Bucks were 27th. Another reason for the Spurs' defensive ineptitude this season? They rank dead last in steals and 29th in blocks. Yet through all of this, the Spurs have seemingly maintained their trademark cool. They are the only NBA team without a technical.
  
• Time for some Andrew. Andrew Bogut is coming off yet another frustrating game in which he netted just five points in less than 20 minutes. Bogut is averaging just 29.6 minutes, fifth most on the team and the the fewest since his rookie year. Fortunately, he's had some success against the Spurs in his career, highlighted by an impossible game-winning bank shot at the buzzer back in December 2007. In six games against San Antonio, Bogut has averaged 14.3/10.0/2.3 and 1.2 blocks on 57.6 % from the field. Not that it was ever Bogut's specialty, but he can't seem to make a shot from outside a couple feet from the hoop this year. The Aussie's shooting 40.7 % from the line, and is making only 16.7 % of his jumpers.
  

Coverage:

Pounding the Rock

In a matchup full of subplots, LeBron James became the story, lifting the Cavs to a 99-93 win over the Bucks with a familiar 41 points.

The Cavs jumped to an 8-0 lead but the Bucks stormed back into the game behind the youth movement of Ramon Sessions, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, and Joe Alexander in the second quarter, taking a 36-34 advantage. James slowly but surely and predictably took over throughout the rest of the game, propelling Cleveland to its fifth straight win and extending Milwaukee's losing streak to three games.

Three Bucks

• Richard Jefferson. Certainly not the small forward of the game, he played a solid, unspectacular, Jeffersonian game. The problem is that without Redd it takes a far more heroic effort from him to win a game like this one.
  
• Ramon Sessions. Ramon guided a troubled offense with some degree of confidence and direction. The point guard didn't turn the ball over for the second consecutive game. In fact, he was the only Buck not to turn the ball over at least once. Sessions helped push the Bucks back into the game in the second quarter before giving way to a hot Ridnour in the third.
• Charlie Villanueva. CV spared the Bucks of a truly embarrassing first quarter by hitting for 10 points and four rebounds, including a tough fadeaway at the shot clock buzzer that finally got Milwaukee on the scoreboard more than three minutes into the game. Then he didn't scorer until late in the fourth quarter. He finished with 12/10/4, which on this mildly bizarre night places him here, and ties him for the team lead in assists.
  

Three Numbers

• 16. That is the number of Buck assists and turnovers, not exactly sweet equality.
• 41... is fun for LeBron James, who scored that same number of points for the third time a week.
  
• 0. The Cavs had three different players who logged at least 20 minutes each who did not make a shot from the field: Ben Wallace (0-3), Wally Szczerbiak (0-3), and Daniel Gibons (0-8). Not only that, this terrific trio didn't score a single point. They do play with LeBron however. On a related note, they won.
  

Three Good

• Free points and three points. Nine Bucks scored, and each and every one one of them got to the free throw line and converted at least once. On a night the Bucks couldn't shoot from the field (.380), they were at least smart and aggressive enough to get 26 points the easy way, hitting 26-31 (.839) from the line. Milwaukee also made three-point attempts worthwhile, nailing 7-16 (.438)
• On point. This wasn't anywhere near the best game we've seen from Sessions or Ridnour, but the point guard tandem shouldn't have many Milwaukeeans missing Mo. Ridnour recovered from an unbearably bad start by keying a 29-point third quarter for the Bucks. That came after Sessions orchestrated the team's comeback from an early double-digit deficit a quarter earlier. Meanwhile, Mo had a respectable 16 points and five dimes, and in a strange game fittingly attempted a ton of free throws, making 9-10. Really though, he seems to fit in better with LeBron James, and without so many point guard responsibilities.
• Call it a comeback. Who would have guessed that after falling behind 0-8 the Bucks would battle back and go up 33-32? Or that after the Cavs took an 11-point lead early in the third that Milwaukee would steal a 69-66 lead before the fourth? Winning in Cleveland isn't easy. No one's done it yet this year. Realistically speaking, it was at least nice to see some fight in this young bunch.
  

Three Bad

• First, off. The Bucks, with the exception of Villanueva, came out with the shooting accuracy of Dick Cheney hunting quail, opening 1-9. Charlie Bell momentarily channeled his early-season "form" of last year en route to an 0-4 start less than seven minutes into the game. That begged even Michael Redd's most serious detractors to hope just a bit that number 22 would trade in the spiffy suits for a jersey soon. Milwaukee made just two field in the game's first seven and a half minutes. 
• Bogut's malaise. The title is taken from Frank's pregame notes, which unfortunately holds as true after the game as it did before. Scott Skiles has been quick to banish Andrew Bogut to the bench with any hint of foul trouble, but somehow Bogut managed to accumulate his fifth foul midway through the third quarter. That was unfortunate because Bogut had just gotten going with a couple drunks in the minutes prior. Overall though, the seven-footers came up small. Those two dunks were his only field goals of the game, as he continues to show few signs of diversifying his offensive arsenal.
• Shoot. 38.0 % from the field is an eyesore. Francisco Elson shot 2-3 from the field, but no one else hit a majority of shots on the Bucks. Delonte West, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, LeBron James, and Anderson Varejao all made most of their shots though.
  

• Our man Rob Peterson interviewed John Hammond for NBA.com last week.  Thanks for dropping our name, Rob.  Have we mentioned how much we love Rob Peterson over at BrewHoop HQ?
• Gery Woelfel writes that the Bucks aren't right without Michael Redd.
• Luc Mbah a Moute's all-around excellence has a lot of people doing a double-take, but not our friends at Bruins Nation.
• InsideHoops catches Andrew Bogut in a pretty good mood. That's probably because the interview was conducted a few games ago, on Nov. 2.

  Basketball is fun again in Milwaukee. Coach’s system is a tough system to learn, but it’s proven to get results and I’ve enjoyed the last few games.

• Speaking of Bogut, Shaquille O'Neal supposedly* wrote the below quote in his supposed Twitter feed following the win over the Bucks. Since we all know The Big Aristotle is such a big battle-rapper... Shaq / what you lack / is humility  / even more than free-throw shooting ability. That said, he sure does have Bogut's number in head-to-head matchups. (*It's not verified that this is Shaq's Twitter feed. And thanks to Phoenix Stan at BSoS and Ben Q Rock of 3QC in Fanshots for the heads-up on this story.)

  Bogut is Erika Dampier with a beard.

• Ball Don't lie ranks the Bucks the 19th best team in the National Basketball Association.
• The Bucks stand 19th in FoxSports' power rankings.
• NBA.com also rates the Bucks 19th.
• SI.com's Marty Burns places the Bucks 20th.
• At The Hive hosts the blogger team power rankings, where the Bucks are pegged 21st.
• Marc Stein at ESPN.com agrees, ranking the Bucks 21st as well.
• Toshitaka Kondo of Rhapsody reveals Michael Redd's playlist. Vibe's Chris Yuscavage doesn't list any of Redd's songs among the most interesting of the NBA stars' picks.
• Yi Jianlian is playing some basketball in Jersey. Yi put up 24/10/4 against the Heat last night.