• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Bucks and Bobcats clash in big Eastern Conference matchup

Mar 28, 2011 - 3:10 PM (Sports Network) - Two teams gunning for the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference square off this evening in Charlotte, as the Bobcats resume a three-game homestand versus the Milwaukee Bucks at Time Warner Cable Arena.

Charlotte is one game behind Indiana for the eighth and final postseason spot in the Eastern Conference while the Bucks are two games off the pace. Both the Bobcats and Bucks have 10 games remaining on their schedules.

The Bobcats have won two in a row since a four-game slide and opened the homestand with a 114-106 victory over the New York on Saturday despite 36 points from Knicks star Carmelo Anthony. Boris Diaw scored 20 points and Stephen Jackson returned to the lineup because of a hamstring issue to post 19 points for the Bobcats, who were coming off a win over Boston and got 13 points apiece from D.J. Augustin, Gerald Henderson and Shaun Livingston.

"I was just so pleased with how we executed offensively," said Charlotte head coach Paul Silas. "We played good defensively, but our offensive execution was really good."

Charlotte had eight players score in double figures for the first time in franchise history and will also host Cleveland on the homestand. It is 18-17 at Time Warner Cable Arena this season.

Milwaukee will kick off a three-game road trip tonight against the Bobcats, Raptors and Pacers, and is only 10-24 as the guest this season.

The Bucks had won three of four games until suffering a 95-87 loss versus the Chicago Bulls on Saturday from the Bradley Center. MVP candidate Derrick Rose led the way with 30 points for the Bulls while John Salmons scored 25 points to lead Milwaukee. Carlos Delfino registered 23 points in a losing cause and the Bucks were outscored, 12-0, to end the contest.

"We didn't convert down the stretch. We had the game won," said Bucks guard Brandon Jennings.

Milwaukee All-Star guard Michael Redd could make his season debut tonight after undergoing knee surgery more than a year ago. Redd appeared in just 18 games during the 2009-10 campaign and 51 games in the previous two seasons.

The Bucks have beaten the Bobcats twice already this season and have won nine of the past 12 meetings in this series. Milwaukee, however, has dropped five of its last seven trips to North Carolina's largest city.