Stephen Nover's NBA Monday Big Ticket
(NBA) Milwaukee vs. Brooklyn,
Point Spread: 2.00 | -121.00 Milwaukee (Away)
Result: Loss
No getting around it. The Bucks did not play well in Game 1 this past Saturday losing, 115-107, despite James Harden only playing less than a minute before suffering a hamstring injury. 

Joe Harris and Blake Griffin picked up some of Harden's scoring slack making a combined 9 of 18 from 3-point range. That's not likely to occur again. Harden is ruled out and the Bucks should shoot a lot better from beyond the arc than their 6-of-30 in Game 1. The Bucks also made only 58 percent of their free throws going 11-for-19. 

What the Bucks did right is bury the Nets with 72 points in the paint. Much of this inside damage was done by superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Nets couldn't contain him as he scored 34 points on 16 of 24 shooting from the floor. 

The Bucks should shoot much better this time around. They ranked in the top-five in field goal percentage and 3-point shooting percentage. There is no Harden. The Nets are vulnerable inside and can't stop Antetokounmpo. 

So look for Game 2 to go to the Bucks.