Steph, Dubs couldn't adjust to Bucks' size, length, strength

MILWAUKEE -- Here's how the Warriors started off Tuesday night against the Milwaukee Bucks at Fiserv Forum: First, Draymond Green's defense on Giannis Antetokounmpo forced a 24-second shot clock violation.

Then, Jordan Poole drilled a 3-pointer in the Warriors' first offensive possession. Two Klay Thompson jumpers gave Golden State a quick 7-0 lead.
 
Good, right? If only the game ended there for Golden State. 

Everything went downhill following the Warriors' strong start, resulting in a 128-111 loss to the Bucks. Their latest defeat away from Chase Center drops the Warriors' road record to an absurd 2-12 this season. 

"First quarter, the game wasn't connected in terms of getting good shots, and obviously the fouling, getting them to the free-throw line and slowing the game down and not reading their defense in terms of how they were trying to guard us and not making the game easier on ourselves," Steph Curry, who led the Warriors with 20 points, said after the loss. "We obviously know we've had struggles on the road and they continued tonight, but our energy was great. 

"Just connecting that with an IQ. They're a great defense. We can't just be stubborn thinking however you show up in those first six minutes, you got to be able to make adjustments to keep yourself in it and get some momentum, and we didn't do that."

Following their best win of the season, beating the Boston Celtics 123-107 in San Francisco on Saturday night, the Warriors took a big step back against another top team in the NBA. What was most apparent was the difference in size, length and strength between these two teams.
 
Andrew Wiggins, who missed his fourth straight game with a right adductor strain and will not be available for Wednesday night's game against the Indiana Pacers, usually makes up for plenty of that.

Wiggins is 6-foot-7, is one of the Warriors' best defenders and though he has turned himself into a dangerous 3-point shooter, Wiggins is at his best when he's attacking the basket. The Warriors certainly could have used some (a lot) of that in Milwaukee. 

No excuses. The Bucks also were without one of their best.

Jrue Holiday, who's averaging 19.1 points, 7.4 assists, 5.3 rebounds and made his fourth All-Defensive team last season, was out due to an illness. In his place, Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer turned to a bulldog of a 6-foot-1 guard in Jevon Carter. 

"I thought Jevon Carter set a great tone defensively for them," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. "He was all over the ball."

By halftime, with the Warriors in a 12-point hole, the Dubs had drained 11 3-pointers and had outscored the Bucks by 24 points beyond the arc. But through the first two quarters, the Bucks grabbed 11 more rebounds than the Warriors and scored 30 points in the paint compared to Golden State's 14.

Though the Warriors only committed two more fouls than the Bucks in the first half, the Bucks attempted 13 free throws while the Warriors only went to the charity stripe once with Kevon Looney making one of his two shots. 

In the end, the Warriors did make eight more 3-pointers than the Bucks, but Milwaukee's 41.4 percent clip from deep was just a bit better than Golden State's 40 percent. It was closer to the basket where the difference was most notable. 

The Warriors also shot 40 percent on 2-pointers. However, the Bucks made 62.3 percent of said shots. The Bucks outrebounded the Warriors 55 to 37 and scored 48 points in the paint compared to the Warriors' 30.

As Milwaukee sagged its defense and clogged the paint, the Warriors couldn't adjust in real-time.

There's a reason, or reasons, the Bucks entered the night with the NBA's best defensive rating (106.8) and led the league in opponent field goal percentage, holding their opponents to 44.7 percent. The tape will be studied to reach the heights the Warriors wish to return to.

"I think there were five or six possessions where we got too far downhill," Curry said. "They were kind of shading in the paint and they have guys who make a huge presence. You got Brook [Lopez], you got Giannis [Antetokounmpo], you got Bobby Portis in there, so trying to finish over them, it's tough.

"But we can create better shots by just leveraging that into kicking it out to either Draymond [Green] or Kevon [Looney], whether they're taking shots or DHOs on the weak side. Just making them work one or two extra passes. That's where the game kind of got a little out of hand."

Another number that stood out was 25.

That's how many assists the Warriors finished, which still was three more than the Bucks. It also is nearly five assists below the Warriors' league-best 29.6 assists per game, with their magic number being 30. 

"We got to move the ball," Green, who led the Warriors with seven assists, said. "Tonight, I think we didn't move the ball. You've got to move the ball just to move the ball, not necessarily move the ball because you have to move the ball. Just make it a point to move the ball.

"And then you find gaps. Then that length is slow to move. If you just try to attack the length, you'll struggle." 

RELATED: May Steph, Giannis remain civic treasures as one-team stars

The Warriors took down the NBA's best a few nights ago but certainly struggled once again to begin their six-game road trip.

Corrections will have to come in a hurry with their next game being less than 24 hours away.

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