Cooper Flagg notched his 12th double-double of the season with 19 points and 10 rebounds, but it wasn’t enough to prevent the Dallas Mavericks from falling to the Milwaukee Bucks, 123-99. The Bucks snapped a four-game skid, while the Mavericks faced a challenging night on the road.
MILWAUKEE - Playing the second game of a back-to-back, the Mavericks were short-staffed with only 11 players suited up. Things took a turn for the worse when Daniel Gafford exited in the second quarter due to a right shoulder stinger, leaving Dallas with just 10 players.
Gafford’s early departure halted any momentum for the Mavericks, who now sit at 24-52 with five games remaining in the season. Ryan Rollins led Milwaukee with 24 points, seven rebounds, and nine assists, while Kyle Kuzma added 20 points to help the Bucks end their losing streak.
The Bucks, who had dropped 14 of their last 17 games, have now won their last eight meetings against Dallas and four straight in Milwaukee. Missing from the Mavericks’ lineup were Klay Thompson, P.J.
Washington, Naji Marshall, Marvin Bagley III, Kyrie Irving, Dereck Lively II, and Caleb Martin. Coach Jason Kidd remained tight-lipped about Gafford's status, noting only that more details would be available Wednesday.
Milwaukee’s shooting barrage from beyond the arc was relentless, as they nailed 20 of their 54 attempts. The Mavericks struggled to respond, trailing 65-51 at halftime and falling behind by as much as 31 in the fourth quarter.
Cooper Flagg, despite his solid double-double, shot 6-of-19 from the field. He showed improved decisiveness compared to his previous outing, but the Mavericks as a whole shot just 35.4% from the field and 27.8% from three-point range.
John Poulakidas provided a spark early on, hitting a pair of threes in the first quarter and ending the night with a season-high 11 points. Brandon Williams added 18 points and six assists, stepping up in the starting lineup for the second half.
The game slipped away from Dallas in the second quarter, highlighted by Rollins’ back-to-back threes that ignited a 14-0 run. The Mavericks’ five turnovers in the quarter resulted in 10 points for the Bucks, and their cold shooting continued with a 1-of-10 performance from deep.
With Gafford sidelined, rookie Moussa Cissé emerged as a key contributor, tallying eight points, 13 rebounds, three steals, and two blocks in 22 minutes - marking his most impactful performance of the season.
Bucks coach Doc Rivers had high praise for Flagg’s development, particularly Kidd’s decision to give the rookie some run as a point guard earlier in the season. Rivers noted, "The idea of Flagg as a secondary ballhandler alongside Kyrie Irving is just scary. You can see the growth in his game with each outing."
Flagg acknowledged the increased physicality as the season progresses, saying, "It’s definitely getting more physical out there, but that’s part of the game. You just have to adapt and keep pushing through."