1.  The backup shooting guards were genuinely atrocious tonight, as Wally Szczerbiak and Daniel Gibson combined for 0 points on 0-for-9 in 47 combined minutes.  The Cavaliers have gotten much more out of Delonte West (11 points tonight, a ridiculous 56% from the field for the season) than this observer expected, but Gibson and Szczerbiak have been woefully inconsistent.  Gibson's shot is very flat, and he's shooting just 22% from the field and 21% from 3-point range in his last 5 games.  Wally has been more inconsequential that outright bad, but he's only shooting 12.5% from beyond the arc in the last 5.  The Cavaliers have been very lucky to have #23 out there to pick up the scoring slack for these two, because lately the team is not getting the scoring they expect from their designated jump shooters.

2.  The Cavaliers still allowed the Bucks to grab too many offensive rebounds.  Milwaukee came up with 17 offensive rebounds tonight, helping them stay in the game despite shooting just 38% from the floor.  The Cavaliers have given up an average of 17.6 offensive rebounds per game over their last three games.  Part of the problem has been Ben Wallace's lack of rebounding, as he once again pulled down just 4 rebounds (with 0 points) in 21 minutes.  

3.  A quiet moment for Herb Score, who passed away at age 75 on Tuesday.  As a kid growing up in the 80's, Herb Score was the voice of the Cleveland Indians as I began to understand and appreciate the game.  Cavaliers radio announcer Joe Tait worked with Score on Indians broadcasts in the 70's, and he had a nice tribute to Score prior to tonight's game.  Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Plain Dealer has the story. 

1.  What exactly is the Bucks' gameplan?

Woe to the Bucks fan.  A few years ago it got to the point where Bucks fans were actually petitioning to bring in Bill Simmons, of ESPN.com fame, to be the GM.  With Scott Skiles, the Bucks have their third head coach in three seasons, and have a combined 57-115 (33% winning percentage) in that span.  It's low tide for a team that once teamed Oscar Robertson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (then Lew Alcindor) on an NBA Championship team.

And now, they seem to have built their team around a head coach (Skiles) who has a history of losing his players after just a few seasons, a non-stop shooter (Michael Redd) who is looking less like a superstar and more like a rich-man's Ben Gordon, and a second-tier wingman (Richard Jefferson) who is a Robin desperately needing a Batman.  The Bucks also had the misfortune of choosing Andrew Bogut over Chris Paul and Deron Williams in the 2006 NBA Draft.  At the moment, they already have $55 Million in salary committed for the 2010-2011 season, meaning that without a trade, this is their team for the foreseeable future.  

At least they have their awesome old logo. 

2.  What's it like to have this kind of fall-back plan?  

Buck's player and former UCLA Bruin Luc Mbah a Moute is a rookie trying to make his name in the league with his size, athleticism and defense.  But it turns out that Mbah a Moute is also a Camaroonian prince.  Unlike Austin Carr, I'm not sold on Mbah a Moute's chances in the league, though he has the physical tools to be a quality overall defender.  But if this whole NBA thing doesn't work out, "prince" looks nice next to "former NBA player" on a resume.

3.  How will the Cavaliers handle Western Conference teams this week?

The Cavs have gotten fat on their Central Division opponents, with wins over the Bucks and the Indiana Pacers, and two wins over the Chicago Bulls.  Now they welcome the Denver Nuggets and Utah Jazz to Cleveland on Thursday and Saturday, respectively.  The Cavaliers are 1-1 against the Western Conference this season, and they will make it very difficult for the Cavaliers to extend their current 5-game winning streak.  

Go Cavs.  Still loving this "basketball every other day" thing.