The Milwaukee Bucks haven’t met the Chicago Bulls since they were eliminated in six games by Chicago in the first round of last year’s playoffs. But that comes to an end tonight as the Bucks enter the United Center still probably harboring some ill-feelings opposite their division rivals. Can Milwaukee deal the first blood in their first meeting with Chicago this season? Or will the Bulls reign supreme again?
Read on below for an in-depth breakdown of this Central Division showdown. If you’re craving for more hoops action, check out our preview of the Knicks at Hawks game and the college basketball clash between Kentucky and LSU.
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Milwaukee Bucks vs. Chicago Bulls Betting Preview
Where: United Center, Chicago, IL
When: Tuesday, January 5, 2016, 8:00 PM ET
Line: Milwaukee Bucks (+7.5) at Chicago Bulls (-7.5); total: 198.0– view all NBA lines
TV Broadcast:NBATV
Betting on the Milwaukee Bucks (14-22)
[sc:NBA250 ]Milwaukee saw its brief two-game winning run come to a bitter end at the hands of the almighty Spurs, who mercilessly beat them by 25 points on Sunday. The productions from both Kawhi Leonard (24 points) and LaMarcus Aldridge (16) proved to be more than enough to give the Bucks their 22nd setback of the season.
Despite the loss, the efforts of Michael Carter-Williams and Khris Middleton were worth noting. They had 16 and 19 points respectively while combining for seven boards and 10 assists. But unfortunately those numbers weren’t enough to make things close or at least interesting as San Antonio shot the ball at a ridiculous 54.4% clip.
Moving forward, the Bucks will look to immediately put themselves back on the winning track when they square off for the first time this year with the Chicago Bulls at the United Center. For them to succeed in doing so, Milwaukee ought to silence Jimmy Butler and constantly prevent him from finding his touch.
That said, a lot of the pressure falls on the entire team to provide a collective effort on the defensive side of the floor. Middleton, in particular, will need to play smart in conserving some energy for offense as he’s bound to be the one guarding Butler for the most part of the match.
Middleton, the team’s top scorer (16.2), has been on point over the past four games with averages of 25.2 points, 3.0 rebounds and 5.0 dimes. He’s also finished with more than 10 points in all but five of the Bucks’ 36 games.
Lastly, the pair of Greg Monroe and Giannis Antetokounmpo will need to make their presence felt in this one. The two are averaging combined numbers of 31.0 points with 16.3 boards this season and are set to challenge a Bulls defense that allows 42.7 points in the paint.
Milwaukee is 3-7 SU and 6-4 ATS in its past 10 games on the road.
Along with the thunderous cheers of the United Center crowd, the Chicago Bulls enter this game with most of the momentum on their side. They’ve been taking care of business lately, winning five of their past seven games and are currently on a four-game winning streak.
This success is all thanks to their wingman in Jimmy Butler. Butler, the team’s top point-getter (21.8), is averaging 23.1 points, 4.1 rebounds and 5.1 assists while shooting a sizzling 49.5% in his last seven outings.
For a better proof of this dominance, the 2014-15 Most Improved Player torched the Raptors on Sunday by dropping 40 of his 42 points in the second half to help Chicago notch the thrilling 115-113 win. That performance broke Michael Jordan’s franchise record for points in a half (39).
It wouldn’t be surprising to see Butler provide another solid performance opposite the Milwaukee Bucks, who are not really known for their defense (103.1 points given up per contest). But it’s worth noting though, that Butler’s had his share of struggles in this matchup. Across 14 career games, he’s tallying just 10.0 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game versus Milwaukee.
If Butler does fail to find his form, that puts Chicago in a relatively precarious situation especially with their third-leading scorer Derrick Rose (14.4 PPG) still recovering from a sore right knee. That being said, the pressure is indeed on Pau Gasol to take charge in this one.
Gasol has been arguably the most consistent player on the Bulls right now with averages of 16.4 points, 10.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.3 blocks. He already has 17 double-doubles under his name thus far and is bound to have another one opposite a Bucks squad that is yielding 42.6 points in the paint this season.
Chicago is 7-3 SU and 5-5 ATS in its previous 10 home games.
