Bucks Beat Nets, 91-81
MILWAUKEE (AP) Andrew Bogut had 17 points and 18 rebounds and Brandon Jennings had two points in his return after missing 19 games because of a broken foot to help the Milwaukee Bucks win their third consecutive game, 91-81 over the New Jersey Nets on Saturday night.
Jennings missed all three shots he took but made a pair of free throws and had one assist in 11 minutes in a game where Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers received the biggest cheers of the night while watching courtside with Milwaukee Brewers All-Star Ryan Braun.
Brook Lopez scored 26 points and Anthony Morrow had 16 for New Jersey.
Carlos Delfino led Milwaukee in scoring with 21 points and Keyon Dooling had 14 points and nine assists.
It was a game between the lowest-scoring teams in the NBA and both squads stayed in form with the Bucks missing eight of nine shots to open the game and New Jersey missing 10 of 13 to begin the second quarter.
The Bucks went 8-11 with Jennings injured and the return of the team's leading scorer at 17.9 points comes at a good time for Milwaukee. The game Saturday night was the second in a stretch where they play 12 of 13 games against teams with losing records.
Milwaukee (19-26) is ninth in the Eastern Conference standings.
Despite Jennings return, Dooling was the key point guard against the Nets in the fourth quarter. He sparked a 15-4 run, scoring six points with an assist during the stretch.
Dooling made a long 2-pointer to extend Milwaukee's lead to 81-67 and then hit another jumper. Bogut rebounded his own miss for another easy basket and the Bucks led, 85-67.
New Jersey ran off six consecutive points to pull within 85-73 on a pair of free throws by Lopez, but Delfino scored on a running layup to make it 87-73 with 3:46 to go.
Travis Outlaw made a 3-pointer with 40 seconds left to bring the Nets within 89-81, but New Jersey could get no closer.
Milwaukee took the lead for good, 30-27, on Delfino's 3-pointer with 9:50 left in the second quarter and led, 45-37 at halftime.
NOTES: The crowd gave Rodgers and Braun a standing ovation when they walked onto their courtside seats with 4:15 left in the third quarter while the game was being played. The pair was introduced prior to the fourth quarter, drawing the biggest cheers of the night in the Bradley Center. ... Milwaukee's John Salmons missed his seventh game due to a right hip strain, Chris Douglas-Roberts was excused due to a death in his family and Drew Gooden was out with plantar fascitis in his left foot. ... The Nets' Jordan Farmar missed his second consecutive game with a lower back strain.
