The San Antonio Spurs returned home to host the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night.
The Silver and Black stayed in the game until the end, but Milwaukee picked up the win, 121-111.
Khris Middleton led all scorers with 28 points for the Bucks, while Giannis Antetokounmpo added 21 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists in the victory.
Doug McDermott tallied 25 points, including a career-high seven 3-point-shots for the Spurs in the losing effort.
The Spurs fall to 1-2 with the loss. They host the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night at the AT&T Center.
Postgame Notes:
Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich:
(Opening Statement…)
“Nobody likes to lose. That includes me, but I couldn't be more proud of this team. I think it's tough start to a season with this schedule. This particular back-to-back, not just because of the teams, but the travel involved. But it is early in the season so that's not an excuse, but it makes it a little bit more difficult for a young group. I couldn't be more proud of the way they played toe-to-toe. The Bucks are the NBA champs and they’re talented. Bud (Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer) and his staff do a great job with him. They are tough out and I thought our guys played with great passion, great character. It's a game of mistakes and we have to continue to try to make fewer mistakes on defense and not have as many dry possessions on offense, but I couldn't be more proud of them. Their effort and their camaraderie; 29 assists again so I'm thrilled. I'll sleep well tonight.”
(On forcing 20 turnovers…)
“I don't know if we're going to force that many turnovers every game, but you know if you're playing good defense that's part of it. You're probably gonna end up on the right side of that.”
(On the team effort…)
“I liked everybody's work out there you know there a hell of a team and I thought we could have played much better we could have made fewer mistakes were made up of human beings also.”
Spurs Forward Doug McDermott:
(On opening the floor for other guys…)
“I like getting people open in different ways. I’m not the greatest passer in the world, but I feel like with my cutting, knowledge of the game, I feel like I can open things up for guys. Sometimes I kind of look like a chicken with my head cut off running around out there. I run into guys, especially the new guys I’m playing with. But they’re starting to get used to me, and I’m starting to get used to them.”
(On playing ‘freestyle’ with many new pieces…)
“I just think we’re all basketball players, and the Spurs obviously do their homework on the guys they bring in. They’re smart guys who know how to play the game, and we’re going to catch onto things pretty quickly. Sometimes the more sets you run, the more confusing it can get. Sometimes you just play basketball, like we did tonight. We showed we can play with the world champs. I think as random basketball as we can get, the better. We’re going to continue to keep getting better on those things.”
Spurs Guard Doug Derrick White:
(On the Spurs defense…)
“We were active and making it tough on them. We’re pretty good, so we just got to limit the mistakes on that end and get out and run in transition, try not to dig ourself in such a big hole that we got to come back like that. We’re definitely capable of doing that.”
(On playing with Doug McDermott)
Yeah. He’s one of the best shooters in the league, tough to guard, active, moves a lot, moves well without the ball. We just got to find him any chance he gets open. He was big tonight.”
Bucks Head Coach Mike Budenholzer:
(On Pat Connaughton…)
“He puts a lot of time in. There’s a comfort and a confidence that he’s had and it’s just growing. I think his teammates, the same thing. They’re looking for him, great passes. Giannis attracts a lot of attention, gives him some looks. He hit several big ones for us late.”
(On Khris Middelton, Jrue Holiday and Giannis Antetokounmpo…)
“I think Khris got a few of his shots behind the three-point line that were critical. It felt like he got to the free throw line and got fouled on a few attempts. Jrue got to a couple good spots. Giannis, I think once he got through the foul trouble, made some good plays and had some good possessions. I didn’t know they had 20 straight. They’re just playing basketball and things happen naturally.”
(On the Spurs…)
“They’re tough. They’re young players and they’re growing. They played Denver really close. It’s a two-possession game with a couple minutes to go last night. That’s a tough back-to-back to play in Denver last night then come here. Time zone change, getting in late and those guys kept coming, kept playing, kept competing. That’s very much what you expect when you play a Spurs team.”
Bucks Forward Khris Middleton:
(On his mentality going into tonight’s game…)
“Just finding a way to bounce back. It was a terrible night for us in Miami, but we go through it at times. It’s about how you adjust, how you respond to that. Tonight, I think for the most part, effort was in the right place. The guys came in to play hard. The young guys stepped in. Pat made huge shots for us in that fourth quarter when things got really tight.”
(On the team’s confidence in the fourth quarter…)
“I feel like we’ve had a lot of confidence in past years. The main thing is that we’ve gotten better as a whole, as a group. Knowing what we can get to, knowing how to stay calm. No need to really rush or panic knowing that there’s a lot of possessions left in the game. We just have to take care of the ball first and get great stops on the defensive end. We just need to try to get great shots.”
Bucks Guard Jrue Holiday:
(On how he feels being limited to 25 minutes… )
“I definitely wanted to play as much as possible. Usually when you come back you just want to go back to normal, but sometimes they have to save you from yourself.”
(On his dynamic with Khris and having to lead… )
“I feel like we just kind of have this chemistry where we know what we have to do. Khris is always going to score and be aggressive. I think for me, sometimes I try to get other people involved but there’s definitely sometimes when I know, especially when Giannis is out there, I just have to be aggressive and get to the basket, get into the paint and try to make something happen.”