ON THE COURT
PLAYER OF THE GAME: There's no doubt on this one. Michael Redd easily could have scored 40-plus points, but he wasn't even needed in the fourth quarter of what turned into a Bucks romp. He sank 10 of 16 shots from the field, including 3 of 5 three-pointers, and sank 8 of 10 free throws for his season-high 31 points. "They ran good stuff for Michael," Charlotte coach Larry Brown said. "They got the ball to the open man and played like a good team is supposed to play." PLAY OF THE GAME: Redd cut to the basket and scored off a high-post feed from Andrew Bogut with 3:25 left in the second quarter, giving him 25 points in the game and 10,982 in his career and putting him in fifth place on the Bucks' all-time scoring list (passing Marques Johnson).
STATISTICS SHEET: Charlotte center Emeka Okafor was held scoreless in the first half on 0-of-4 shooting. He finished with 11 points and 12 rebounds for his 18th double-double of the season.
OFF THE BENCH: Charlie Villanueva had 27 points on 9-of-16 shooting after scoring just one point in Houston on Wednesday night. Ramon Sessions did not play due to flu-like symptoms, and Tyronn Lue played 21 minutes as the backup point guard (six points, four rebounds). D.J. Augustin was 2 for 11 and had eight points and five turnovers for the Bobcats.
UP NEXT
TEAMS: Milwaukee Bucks (16-18) vs. Charlotte Bobcats (11-22).
WHEN: 6 tonight.
WHERE: Time Warner Cable Arena, Charlotte, N.C.
BROADCASTS: TV - None. Radio - AM-620.
NOTEBOOK
COUNTING ON EVERYBODY: Bucks coach Scott Skiles said he will need contributions from everyone on the roster as his team navigates through 18 games during January.
He said he was concerned that Bogut played 44 minutes against San Antonio and 40 against Houston.
"We're not going to be able to get through these 18 games and have success with our starters around that level," he said. "I felt like 'Danny G.' (Gadzuric) was playing very well behind Andrew for a while, and the last three or four games we've struggled at the backup forward and backup center spots. We need to get that back."
GETTING COMFY: Point guard Luke Ridnour played well in December and capped the month with two standout performances.
He had 21 points and six assists in the Bucks' 100-98 victory in San Antonio on Tuesday, and he came back the next night with 11 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds in the 85-81 loss to Houston.
"It generally does take some time to have some sort of comfort level," Skiles said. "If you're going to get an assist, it depends on the other guy making a shot. But he's been very, very good lately."
Charles F. Gardner
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