Michael Malone not happy with FT discrepancy in loss to Bucks
Feb 28, 2025, 11:34 AM | Updated: 11:36 am
The Denver Nuggets lost to the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night, losing 121-112 in front of a national TV audience on TNT. And there were plenty of reasons for the defeat.
Outside of Nikola Jokic, who shot a sizzling 13-of-16 from the field in the game, the Nuggets made just 34 of 89 baskets. They were also just 9-of-34 from beyond the three-point line as a team.
Michael Porter Jr. struggled in particular, going just 5-of-22 on the night. Russell Westbrook was 4-of-13, as was Aaron Gordon. And Jamal Murray missed 11 of his 20 shots.
All in all, it was a tough shooting night for Denver. But it was the shots they didn’t get to take that had Michael Malone upset during his postgame press conference.
“We had 32 in transition; we had 68 in the paint,” the Nuggets head coach said, highlighting how his team dominated the game in a number of ways. “We just couldn’t get a foul call.”
He’s not wrong. The Bucks were whistled for just 11 fouls during the game. The Nuggets show only 11 free throws on the night.
“I was trying to talk to the referees all night long about that,” Malone added.
Clearly, he didn’t get the answers he was looking for.
“Obviously, we fouled too much,” the head coach added. “For there to be a 28-to-11 differential is just crazy to me.”
The loss dropped the Nuggets to 38-21 on the season. Currently, they’re sitting in the No. 3 spot in the Western Conference, a half game behind the Grizzlies and a game ahead of the Lakers and Rockets.
Denver is 10-2 in their last dozen games. They try to get back on the winning track tonight in Detroit against the Pistons.
