“Yeah, we remember” - Joe Ingles and Milwaukee Bucks gain revenge for January beatdown at the hands of the Charlotte Hornets
The NBA is filled with hyper-competitors that pounce on perceived slights—whether real or imagined. So, it was no surprise when Joe Ingles and the Milwaukee Bucks sought revenge for a January beatdown at the hands of the Charlotte Hornets.
“Yeah, we remember,” said Bucks forward Joe Ingles. “A young team, they play free, they play fast, and they want to shoot the ball, and we kind of let them do all of that in that first quarter. They had 50-something in that first quarter.”
Not again
The Hornets had handed the Bucks a 138-109 loss in their last meeting, and on Tuesday night, Milwaukee showed that they were not going to let history repeat itself. The Hornets hung 51 in one quarter on the Bucks in their match-up last January 6. However, they fell way short of that this time around as Milwaukee tightened up their defense and punished the Hornets from the get-go en route to a 124-115 win.
Veteran wingman Wesley Matthews knows now is the time for the Bucks to start polishing up their defensive identity—and the Hornets game was a good place to start.
“You still remember that. We still have some building to do. (New Orleans) was a great win. Our offense is starting to come along, but we gave up 44 in the third quarter. So, to be the team we want to be, to beat the teams that we need to beat to get to where we need to get to, we can’t have a 51-point first quarter, 44-point third quarter. Hell, we can’t have 30-point quarters, but every once in a blue moon,” said Matthews.
Just another game
Hornets coach Steve Clifford does not believe the Bucks carried something extra into this game. However, the way Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo played might suggest otherwise. After all, the Greek Freak came up with a measly nine points the last time these two teams met.
On Tuesday, Antetokounmpo fired in 34 points on 14-of-24 shooting to go with 18 rebounds and four assists.
The NBA is filled with competitors, and as Tuesday night proved, there’s nothing better than getting payback. That’s what the Bucks did in a big way, avenging their January loss to the Hornets with a 124-115 victory and putting everyone on notice that they are ready to take on anyone and everyone who stands in their path.
