Bucks Coach Singles Out Georges Niang After Sixers' Upset Win

Finding success against the red-hot Milwaukee Bucks wasn’t easy for the Philadelphia 76ers. Coming off of a tough loss against the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night, the Sixers were heading to Fiserv Forum to visit one of the NBA’s hottest teams.

Mike Budenholzer’s Bucks were on a 16-game win streak. In the third quarter of Saturday’s game, they held an 18-point lead over the Sixers as they jumped on a path to get to 17 in a row.

But then it all came crashing down.

The Sixers lost two starters in the process of their comeback victory on Saturday night, as Tobias Harris and PJ Tucker got an early night off due to suffering in-game setbacks. With those guys going down, some reserves had to step up.

Philadelphia hoped Saturday would be the night the veteran forward Georges Niang climbs out of his recent shooting slump.

While Niang’s been the Sixers’ sharpshooter from deep all year long, averaging 41 percent from beyond the arc in 59 games, he was evidently struggling in the first four games back since returning from the All-Star break.

Going into Saturday’s game against the Bucks, Niang was averaging just ten percent from deep on 2.5 attempts per game. His struggles even led Doc Rivers to keep Niang on the bench for the entire Wednesday night outing against the Miami Heat.

Rivers and the Sixers didn’t have a choice but to utilize Niang in the second half of Saturday’s game. Fortunately, the gamble paid off.

“His shotmaking, his spacing, you know, was a big a big part of them having the success they had in the fourth quarter,” Budenholzer said of Niang after Saturday’s game. “We got to be more aware of him.”

Despite his recent struggles, Niang was lighting up the Bucks from deep on Saturday night. In 28 minutes of action, the Sixers’ reserve put up seven shots from the field. Six of those attempts were from three. Niang dropped over 80 percent of his long-range shots. Four of his threes came in crunch time during his 11-minute shift in the fourth quarter.

While Sixers stars James Harden and Joel Embiid were credited for closing out the comeback win, Niang’s 12 fourth-quarter points were a massive boost for Philadelphia, who outscored the Bucks 48-31 in the final 12 minutes, collecting a notable 133-130 comeback victory.

Now, the Bucks know they have to be aware of what Niang brings to the table the next time the two teams meet on April 2.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.