5 Keys for Milwaukee Bucks Ending Miami Heat's 20-Game Winning Streak

Despite suffering back-to-back losses on Tuesday and Wednesday, the Milwaukee Bucks have a major opportunity at redemption Friday night when they play host to the Miami Heat.

As the Heat extended their winning streak to 20 games with a hard-fought victory over the Philadelphia 76ers Wednesday, the Bucks suffered an embarrassing setback, losing to the Washington Wizards 106-93.

A win Tuesday night would have brought the Bucks within half a game of the Boston Celtics and Atlanta Hawks in the playoff push. Now, they find themselves two and a half back of a three-way tie between Boston, Atlanta and the Chicago Bulls for the No. 5 seed.

And while Jim Boylan and his staff have probably compiled a lengthy list of things the team must do, there are certainly some that are more imperative than others.

5. Bench Production

In Milwaukee's loss to Washington on Wednesday, J.J. Redick accounted for 16 of the 21 points the Bucks received off the bench. In order for them to remain competitive with the Heat, they'll need others to step up.

While Boylan's dispersal of minutes has been questionable at times this year, whoever gets playing time will need to do their share and more.

John Henson had 17 points and 18 rebounds in the team's 113-106 loss to the Heat back in November. If the Bucks can get half of that from a bench player not named Redick on Friday, they'll be competitive.

And while he's started three of the last four games due to an injury to Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, production from Mike Dunleavy—who was scoreless against the Wizards—is essential.

Assuming Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings play to the level they're capable of, Milwaukee's bench may be the reason they have a chance.

4. Efficiency

If the Bucks want to end Miami's streak, they'll need to be efficient and not waste opportunities.

In two games against the Heat this season, the Bucks are shooting 41.5 percent from the field and a paltry 26 percent from behind the three-point line.

Since the arrival of Redick last month, Milwaukee has seen its efficiency surge. Over the past 10 games they're shooting 47.1 percent from the field and 39.6 percent from three-point range.

And while those numbers are up significantly over those posted against the Heat, they're also up from season averages of 43.9 percent and 35.7 percent.

It's also worth noting that the Bucks have been shooting the three much better since Redick joined the team in spite of him struggling on an individual basis in that category.

Continuing to shoot like they have lately should allow the Bucks to stay in the game.

3. Shut Down Miami's Role Players

Keying the defense on LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh is a given, but it can't be at the expense of forgetting about Miami's role players.

Ray Allen, Mario Chalmers and Shane Battier are all capable of hitting big shots. If those three are knocking down their looks, things can get messy in a hurry.

In a November loss, the Bucks allowed Chalmers, Allen and the rest of Miami's bench to score a combined 33 points. In a blowout win in December, they allowed just 20 bench points and took Allen out of the equation.

The chances of James and Wade at least hitting their averages is high. It sounds silly to say—as they're two of the best—but the Bucks must make them win the game and not allow secondary players to.

Miami is such a great team that it's easier said than done, but preventing role players from having an impact might be one of the deciding factors.

2. Larry Sanders

Larry Sanders has emerged as one of the league's elite defenders this season, leading all players with 3.2 blocks per game.

But Sanders doesn't just make his impact felt on defense. Along with those blocks, he provides 9.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game, making him a valuable asset on both ends of the court.

In Milwaukee's first meeting with the Heat, Sanders played just over six minutes and failed to make any sort of major impact. It's not surprising then that the Bucks lost that game.

When the Bucks crushed the Heat 104-85 in December, Sanders played a huge role.

In that game, Sanders scored 17 points, hauled in 11 rebounds and added four blocks while limiting Chris Bosh to 12 points on 5-of-14 shooting.

It's that combination of offense and defense that will make Sanders a very good NBA player. It's also what the Bucks need Friday night in order to stop Miami's tremendous streak.

1. Brandon Jennings

Who would want to face the Miami Heat this postseason?

It seems like a preposterous question to even ask, but there's at least one guy that does: Brandon Jennings.

Just last week, Jennings admitted his desire to play the defending champions in the first round to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

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"The two games that we played Miami so far, we matched up well against them," Jennings said. "If you ask me, that's who I would want to play first round, Miami.

"Just the fact over the years, a lot of the games have gone down to the wire with us and Miami. Right now we haven't really played well against the Knicks. I just feel better if we play Miami first round, just the fact we have good games against them.

"I don't know if it's because they're the champs or what, but we always play harder against Miami."

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And while the playoffs are a little more than a month away, Jennings is going to get the opportunity to backup some of his comments on Friday.

In order for that to happen, he'll need to be the Brandon Jennings that emerged for a five-game stretch earlier this month. During that run, he averaged 19.2 points and 13.2 assists while shooting 47.6 percent from the field and 53.1 percent from behind the three-point line.

Not only that, but he'll need to make a commitment to defense and not let Mario Chalmers get easy points at the rim.

If the Jennings from the past two games shows up, the Bucks are in trouble. But with the aforementioned comments lingering in the background, one has to think he'll turn it up a notch.

And if he does, Milwaukee has a good chance of winning.