Summer League Game 4 Recap: Bucks 110 Hornets 91

The Bucks Get Their First Win of Summer League as Nate Ament Stars

by Aiden Fermaner

16/07/26

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The Bucks are shorthanded, missing their best player of the Summer League, Brayden Burries. This doesn't slow the Bucks down as they get their first win, and Nate Ament answers the call.

First Quarter

Bogoljub Markovic started the game off hot, coming out and hitting a three, along with a straight drive and a dunk in the paint. Nate Ament followed suit and came out looking aggressive, attacking the defence almost every time he touched the ball this quarter. He hits a good pull-up midrange over the defence and moves off ball to cash in a corner three that he is also fouled on. It's a good look for him being aggressive with his shot and dribble. Hopefully, we see more of it, especially if he plays shorter minutes.

Having Brandon Boston and Kam Jones out there at times will be helpful to hopefully secure some wins in the Summer League. They offer a veteran and experienced perspective that will translate to better play by the whole team, and they’ll also stop the momentous runs we have experienced that have cost us some of these Summer League games. Even Zack Austin has the same effect on the game, and yet again, he shows he can use his athleticism on defence as he swats away a shot in spectacular fashion this quarter. 

Second Quarter

Nate Ament continues to look good and is much more aggressive. It could be the absence of Brayden Burries that has allowed him to get to his shot a bit more, but he is looking much more confident this game, and so far, it is paying off. He has looked good on the boards, too, and takes a rebound coast to coast and gets to the line for 2. Bogoljub Markovic continues to look good, cashing in another three in a slower second half from him. We ended a great first half winning 53-37.

Third Quarter

Nate Ament comes out to start the third quarter and backs down Tidjane Salaun and hits a fadeaway over him. It was a great look, he backed down a player with NBA experience and is a bit bigger than him, but had the confidence in his ability to hit the shot. He looks much more confident in this game, and hopefully that continues throughout this Summer League. He isn’t afraid to shoot the ball, and after a miss he doesn’t look fazed and goes back, happy to shoot it again, which is a good change from his first few games, where he looked more nervous and in his own head.

The Hornets go on a big run in the middle of the third quarter, but the Bucks stay resilient and go on a great counter-run to end the third, up 79-64. It was a great look from the Bucks, as through the first few games, we allowed teams to go on these runs in close games and showed no fight or ability to claw back from them.

Fourth Quarter

Pete Nance looks good and scrappy to start the fourth quarter, getting himself involved on both ends and creating issues for the Hornets. Hannes Steinbach was dominating us in this game, and it has been a recurring theme for us this Summer League: we struggle with these larger interior bigs who are good inside. Our 3 main bigs/forwards we are running could all be considered more of power forwards or even small forwards against some of these bigger centers we are going against. I’m not sure we will even have an answer for that this Summer League with the way our roster has been composed. Jesse Edwards is a big and a traditional center, but he struggles with some of these larger-framed bigs that we are having problems with. 

Nate Ament catches fire towards the end of this game, pushing an agenda to score inside, and he won't be told no. He scores a tough layup to start and then a great and-1 straight after, using his dribble along with a change of speed on both possessions. Then he grabs a rebound and goes coast to coast for another layup. He ends with 11 points for the quarter and 23 points for the game to go with 6 rebounds and 2 steals. The Bucks close out a great team win, 110-91.

MVP

Couldn't be happier to be writing this guy's name here today, this game's MVP goes to Nate Ament. He was aggressive and confident all throughout the game and really sealed the deal on the Hornets when he took over in the last quarter. I loved what I saw from him today and I'm looking forward to plenty more of it throughout the Summer League and into the future.