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Bogut, Bell lead charge as Bucks rally for win

Jan 7, 2008 - 4:56 AM CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Ticker) -- Andrew Bogut and Charlie Bell helped the Milwaukee Bucks pick up a rare road win - without Michael Redd, no less.

Bogut scored a season-high 25 points and hit the go-ahead layup as the Bucks posted 93-89 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats on Sunday.

Bogut came up big with eight points during a game-ending 13-2 run which helped the Bucks win consecutive road games for the first time this season.

"I felt good early in the game," Bogut said. "That caused me to get into a good rhythm. My teammates did a good job of finding me, especially in the second half."

And they did it without their leading scorer, Redd, who missed his second straight game with a bruised thigh.

"It's definitely tough (without Redd)," Bogut said. "But this is going to help us in the long run. Guys are getting more accountability. This was really a confidence boost for us."

Bogut capped a 7-0 run with layup to tie the game at 87-87 with 1:34 left, and after a miss by Raymond Felton, Milwaukee called a timeout to run a set play.

After the timeout, Bogut was set up by Bobby Simmons, who took the inbound pass and drove the right baseline before dishing to the big man in the paint for a jump hook with 19 seconds left.

Bell, who scored a season-high 27 points off the bench, then stole the ball from Gerald Wallace and hit a pair of free throws. After a layup by Felton, Mo Williams sealed the win by hitting both free throws.

"Our defense was huge tonight," Bell said. "We haven't been able to finish games this season and were able to get some key scores."

"We stuck together," Williams said. "Tonight's win was huge. For any team to win on the road without their top scorer, is huge. What Charlie Bell and Andrew Bogut did tonight was great."

Wallace scored 25 points and Jason Richardson added 21 for Charlotte, which has lost seven of eight.

"The team put their trust in me to get baskets," Wallace said. "But I forced things and made turnovers."

The Bobcats led 87-80 with 3:39 left, but the Bucks used a 7-0 run capped by a jumper from Bogut that tied the game at 87-87 with 1:34 remaining.

In a battle between two of the league's worst teams, neither squad was able to pull away.

Charlotte held a one-point lead at the half and trailed, 56-54, with 7:50 left in the third. But Wallace and Richardson each scored six points during a 12-1 run that provided the Bobcats with a 66-57 lead with 4:07 left in the period.

Milwaukee then answered with a 9-4 run and trailed, 70-66, entering the final quarter.