Matt Velazquez

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

The Milwaukee Bucks are going to be a prolific three-point shooting team this season. That's been abundantly clear for months now, even before coach Mike Budenholzer's squad ever took the floor together.

But what happens when, for the most part, those three-pointers don't fall? Can the Bucks win anyway?

The resounding answer Wednesday night was yes, as the Bucks rolled to a 123-108 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers at Fiserv Forum. With the win, the Bucks opened the season at 4-0 for the first time since 2001.

BOX SCORE: Bucks 123, 76ers 108

NBA:Live scoreboard, box scores, standings, statistics

Over the course of the night, the Bucks went 13 of 43 from long range, with 30.2% three-point shooting representing their worst output of the season. That started with the Bucks going 1 of 11 from beyond the arc as part of a 22-point first quarter that saw them shoot 5 of 22 overall. So how did they overcome that?

First off, they followed the plan and kept shooting.

In the second quarter, the Bucks absolutely caught fire. Brook Lopez, who finished with 21 points, shook off his 0-for-4 start from downtown by nailing 5 straight three-pointers, including 4 in the second quarter. Khris Middleton connected on 3 of 4 in the second, too, helping him surge toward 25 points on the night. As a team, the Bucks went 8 of 13 from long range in the second quarter as part of a 49-point sprint to the half.

The Bucks kept the shots flying for the rest of the night, but went just 4 of 19 from downtown the rest of the way. Yet their lead increased to as many as 17 points. How?

Well, they had undeniably the best player on the court in Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Greek Freak helped the Bucks shake off a sluggish start by going off in the second. He jammed down highlight-reel dunks and totally took over, dropping in 15 of his 32 points in that quarter alone.

But that wasn't all Antetokounmpo did. The league's leading rebounder, he battled inside for 18 more boards. In doing so, he became the first player since Wilt Chamberlain in 1965-'66 to record four consecutive 25-point, 15-rebound games to open the season, according to ESPN Stats & Info.

“He impresses me with something new nightly," Lopez said. "Every game I just step back for a second as a fan and I’m like, ‘Wow, I can’t believe I just saw that.’ ”

Additionally, Antetokounmpo trusted his teammates with passes throughout the night on the way to 10 assists and his first triple-double of the season. The assist that clinched the triple-double in the fourth quarter came on one of the more amazing plays you'll see, as Antetokounmpo hung in the air, flying out of bounds and at the last second threw the ball behind his head to Tony Snell in the corner for a three-pointer.

“In the first I turned the ball over, I drove the ball left and Malcolm (Brogdon) cut," Antetokounmpo said. "I told him, ‘Stay there’ because while I’m driving it I already know the spots where my teammates are so if I get stuck I’m going to throw it there blindly. … Tony was in the right spot at the right moment. He bailed me out. That was supposed to be a turnover.”

Milwaukee's success wasn't solely the work of Antetokounmpo, though.

The Bucks locked down defensively, especially in the second half, to keep the 76ers at bay. Philadelphia scored just 17 points in the third quarter and finished with 42 in the half.

Everyone played a role, from Ersan Ilyasova taking a pair of charges to Brook Lopez and John Henson battling Joel Embiid inside – helping keep him to 9 of 24 shooting, although Emiid did score 30 points – to rookie Donte DiVincenzo flying out of nowhere for high-flying blocks and contests at the rim.

“I think the thing that stands out a little bit – I shared with the guys – is just a 42-point defensive second half and particularly the third quarter, a 17-point defensive quarter," said coach Mike Budenholzer, who particularly praised his team's transition defense against 76ers guard Ben Simmons. "It’s hard, I’m sure on everybody, when we’re not making shots. … But we’ve got to have our defense there no matter what we’re doing on the other end. When you do that, you can keep the lead and maybe build the lead.”

Also, when the three-pointers aren't falling at a high rate, it helps to be efficient in the paint. That's something the Bucks did well, chalking up 52 points on 26 of 45 shooting inside. Milwaukee also took advantage of foul calls, many of which were earned inside, by going 28 of 30 from the free-throw line.

That success inside and at the foul line also is tangentially related to staying the course and continuing to put three-pointers up.

“As you could see they kept running at us on the three-point line trying to run us off and we kept getting a lot of and-one’s at the basket, a lot of slip plays … and things like that," point guard Eric Bledsoe said. "If we’re not making them but as long as we’re still confident and taking them it’s going to be tough."

In addition to ending the three-game homestand with an unblemished record, the Bucks also made a bit of a statement. The 76ers, the No. 3 seed in last year's Eastern Conference playoffs, were projected to be among the top teams in the East again this year.

If the Bucks want to make a move of their own, it starts with proving themselves against teams like the 76ers.

“They’re a great team. We’re a great team, too, not discrediting them," Bledsoe said. "They did a great job of (getting) people talking about them. At the same time, we’ve got to come out and play and I thought we did a great job of coming out and playing.”

TAKEAWAYS

WELCOME TO THE LEAGUE: DiVincenzo has gotten off to a solid start this season. His do-it-all style, basketball IQ and hustle have impressed head coach Mike Budenholzer enough to regularly use DiVincenzo as his first guard off the bench.

But being a rookie in the NBA still means learning some lessons the hard way. His trial by fire Wednesday night came in the first quarter when he was charged with chasing and guarding 76ers sharpshooter JJ Redick.

Redick put DiVincenzo through the wringer a couple times. First, he used a pump fake that sent DiVincenzo flying by, followed by a side step for a wide-open three-pointer. Later in the period, Redick made a fake cut out of the corner that DiVincenzo bit on. Redick instead drifted back to the corner where he got a pass and splashed the three.

DiVincenzo finished with five points and six rebounds. He had an overall positive impact during his time on the court, but also gained some valuable experience.

ON THE MOVE: Bledsoe displayed both his smarts and speed, leaking out way ahead of Philadelphia's defense on missed shots or turnovers to create transition opportunities.

He made the most of those run-outs, using those to give the Bucks a jolt on the way to finishing with 18 points, eight rebounds and four assists.