Knicks trounced by Bucks, fall to 0-3 vs. Milwaukee this season

Late in the first quarter at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, a video review removed a point from the Milwaukee Bucks, and in adjusting the score to 28-22, the scoreboard briefly posted a 280-22 lead over the Knicks. And it didn’t feel unreasonable.

From start to finish, the Knicks were a step slow, were too small and again seemed outclassed as the Bucks handed them a 130-111 defeat.

This was the first of a two-game set between the teams — they will face off again on Christmas Day at the Garden — and another game in which the Knicks could not match up with the best teams in the Eastern Conference.

The Knicks are 0-3 against the Bucks and 0-3 against the Boston Celtics. Besides finding out why the schedule-makers have loaded their early season with so many tests, the Knicks have to figure out a way to pass one.

“I thought that every aspect of the game, we were a step behind,” coach Tom Thibodeau said. “Defensive transition. Usually we’re a very good rebounding team. We didn’t rebound the ball. We didn’t score in transition ourselves. Just a low energy-type game. So we got to bounce back.”

The Knicks (16-12) had no answers as they again failed to find a way to slow the Milwaukee offense. More troubling, they were pummeled on the glass and played offensively as if they’d just polished off a holiday meal.

“Yeah, we just played behind the eight ball all game,” Jalen Brunson said. “It’s tough to play catch-up with a team like that.”

After days of hearing questions about whether he is big enough to lead a team to contention, Brunson seemed to be the only player on the Knicks who was big enough for the moment.

He scored 36 points, all in the first three quarters, and had seven assists. But just as his 45-point effort on Nov. 3 was wasted in a loss, he had little help and little hope in this game.

A late run softened some of the offensive woes individually. Julius Randle finished with 26 points after shooting 5-for-14 through three quarters and RJ Barrett scored 10 fourth-quarter points. But the Knicks’ troubles were hardly limited to their offensive struggles.

In winning their seventh straight game, the Bucks (22-7) shot 16-for-32 from three-point range, the third straight time they’ve converted at least 50% from beyond the arc against the Knicks this season (59-for-109, 54.1%). And they beat the Knicks up on the glass, outrebounding them 53-41.

“That was one of the first times we got outrebounded like that,” Randle said. “They just had more energy from the start than us.

“[Facing them again in two days], refresh, refocus. Understand that we’ve got to be the aggressor. Come back and get ready again. It’s the same team, same gym. The ball’s not changing, it’s not supposed to change.”

Five Bucks scored at least 19 points, led by Giannis Antetokounmpo with 28 and Khris Middleton with 20.

Part of the Knicks’ troubles came in the opening minutes as Isaiah Hartenstein was hit with a pair of quick fouls. They already were without Mitchell Robinson and Jericho Sims, so that left undersized Taj Gibson as the next option against the Bucks’ massive front line.

“Yeah, that’s just something I can’t do, especially given the situation we’re in right now,” Hartenstein said. “Before when we had Mitch, we had the luxury of if one guy was not doing good or if one guy was in foul trouble, I don’t think there was any drop-off at all. So I feel like especially in a situation where Taj is coming back trying to get his feet under him, I can’t do that. I think I put us in a bad situation, especially against a team like that, where even when I come back, it’s kind of hard to get the lead back. So for the future, I’ve just got to be better in that situation, and I will be better in that situation.”

After taking control in the first quarter, the Bucks never let the Knicks get the lead again. They fell behind by as many as 16 points in the second quarter but closed within 62-54 at halftime on a buzzer-beating jumper by Brunson.

He then scored to start the second half, bringing the Knicks within six. But Milwaukee took a 100-87 lead into the fourth quarter, and after the Knicks closed to within 11, the Bucks scored 11 straight points.

There was a slight spark early as former Knicks teammates Randle and Bobby Portis went at each other, jawing and gesturing as they attacked each other in the paint. But Portis got the better of it on the court early and finished with 23 points and 11 rebounds off the bench.

Notes & quotes: The Knicks made a roster move Saturday morning to provide insurance at center, signing Dmytro Skapintsev to a two-way contract and waiving two-way player Jaylen Martin. The 7-1 Skapintsev played with the Knicks in the Las Vegas Summer League and has been with the Westchester Knicks this season.

“Really hard worker, has gotten a lot better,” Thibodeau said. “His size is terrific. He can pass the ball a little bit. Does a little bit of everything. Great communicator on defense. So we think he’ll be a good addition.”

His arrival surprised his teammates. Hartenstein said, “I’ve never seen him. I mean I’ve seen him in the summer league. He was pretty good. Funny, I thought he was changing. I didn’t know he was coming on. I thought it was Carson [Shanks, the assistant video coordinator]. He’s a tall guy. I thought he was putting on a jersey.”

By Steve Popper

steve.popper@newsday.com@StevePopper

Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.