The 1977–78 Milwaukee Bucks season was the Bucks' tenth season in the NBA.1977–78 Milwaukee Bucks The Bucks had drafted Marques Johnson from UCLA in the 1977 NBA draft.

Draft picks

Round Pick Player Position Nationality College 1 1 Kent Benson C Indiana 1 3 Marques Johnson SF UCLA 1 11 Ernie Grunfeld SG/SF Tennessee 2 27 Glen Williams St. John's 3 47 Gary Yoder SG Cincinnati 4 69 Lewis Brown C Nevada-Las Vegas 5 91 Ron Norwood DePaul 6 113 Chuck Goodyear Miami 7 134 Ron Bostic Detroit Mercy 8 154 Larry Pikes Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Roster

Regular season

Season standings

z – clinched division title y – clinched division title x – clinched playoff spot

Game log

|-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 1 || October 18, 1977 || Los Angeles | W 117–112 | Brian Winters (26) | Marques Johnson (12) | Lloyd Walton (6) | MECCA Arena | 1–0 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 2 || October 19, 1977 || @ Denver | L 115–133 | Marques Johnson (22) | Marques Johnson (11) | Quinn Buckner (7) | McNichols Sports Arena | 1—1 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 3 || October 22, 1977 || Chicago | W 113–95 | Junior Bridgeman (24) | Marques Johnson (11) | Quinn Buckner (7) | MECCA Arena | 2–1 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 4 || October 27, 1977 || @ Houston | L 110–133 | Brian Winters (29) | Marques Johnson (9) | Ernie Grunfeld, Dave Meyers (4) | The Summit | 2—2 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 5 || October 30, 1977 || Seattle | W 108–95 | Dave Meyers (23) | Marques Johnson (12) | Quinn Buckner (12) | MECCA Arena | 3–2

|-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 6 || November 1, 1977 || Kansas City | W 115–95 | Junior Bridgeman (23) | Alex English, Dave Meyers (7) | Quinn Buckner (15) | MECCA Arena | 4–2 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 7 || November 3, 1977 || @ Cleveland | L 91—100

| Coliseum at Richfield | 4–3 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 8 || November 4, 1977 || Houston | W 110–108

| MECCA Arena | 5–3 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 9 || November 8, 1977 || Denver | L 101–111

| MECCA Arena | 5–4 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 10 || November 10, 1977 || @ Washington | W 106–103

| Capital Centre | 6–4 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 11 || November 11, 1977 || Cleveland | L 82–88

| MECCA Arena | 6–5 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 12 || November 13, 1977 || Boston | L 119–127

| MECCA Arena | 6–6 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 13 || November 15, 1977 || Portland | L 106–109

| MECCA Arena | 6–7 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 14 || November 16, 1977 || @ New Jersey | W 116–106

| Rutgers Athletic Center | 7–7 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 15 || November 19, 1977 || @ Philadelphia | L 100–111

| The Spectrum | 7–8 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 16 || November 22, 1977 || Golden State | W 109–88

| MECCA Arena | 8–8 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 17 || November 23, 1977 || @ Kansas City | W 122–116

| Kemper Arena | 9–8 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 18 || November 25, 1977 || @ Atlanta | W 117–115

| Omni Coliseum | 10–8 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 19 || November 26, 1977 || @ San Antonio | L 107–129

| HemisFair Arena | 10–9 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 20 || November 29, 1977 || Detroit | L 99–100

| MECCA Arena | 10–10 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 21 || November 30, 1977 || @ Indiana | W 120–113

| Market Square Arena | 11–10

|-style="background:#fcc;" | 22 || December 2, 1977 || Washington | L 95–108

| MECCA Arena | 11–11 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 23 || December 3, 1977 || @ New York | W 115–108

| Madison Square Garden | 12–11 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 24 || December 4, 1977 || New Jersey | W 134–118 OT

| MECCA Arena | 13–11 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 25 || December 6, 1977 || @ Los Angeles | L 108–109

| The Forum | 13–12 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 26 || December 8, 1977 || @ Golden State | W 117–116

| Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena | 14–12 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 27 || December 9, 1977 || @ Seattle | L 123–136

| Seattle Center Coliseum | 14–13 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 28 || December 10, 1977 || @ Denver | L 111–118

| McNichols Sports Arena | 14–14 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 29 || December 13, 1977 || Philadelphia | W 129–117

| MECCA Arena | 15–14 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 30 || December 16, 1977 || New York | W 152–150 3OT

| MECCA Arena | 16–14 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 31 || December 18, 1977 || Buffalo | W 111–100

| MECCA Arena | 17–14 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 32 || December 21, 1977 || San Antonio | W 116–92

| MECCA Arena | 18–14 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 33 || December 22, 1977 || @ Detroit | L 102–118

| Cobo Arena | 18–15 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 34 || December 23, 1977 || Atlanta | L 93–109

| MECCA Arena | 18–16 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 35 || December 25, 1977 || @ Kansas City | W 131–122

| Kemper Arena | 19–16 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 36 || December 27, 1977 || @ Buffalo | W 108–105

| Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | 20–16 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 37 || December 29, 1977 || Boston | L 115–129

| MECCA Arena | 20–17

|-style="background:#fcc;" | 38 || January 3, 1978 || Phoenix | L 103–125

| MECCA Arena | 20–18 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 39 || January 5, 1978 || New Orleans | L 109–116

| MECCA Arena | 20–19 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 40 || January 6, 1978 || @ Houston | W 103–101

| The Summit | 21–19 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 41 || January 8, 1978 || Kansas City | W 133–123

| MECCA Arena | 22–19 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 42 || January 10, 1978 || Indiana | W 125–103

| MECCA Arena | 23–19 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 43 || January 11, 1978 || @ San Antonio | L 106–130

| HemisFair Arena | 23–20 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 44 || January 13, 1978 || @ Chicago | L 111–128

| Chicago Stadium | 23–21 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 45 || January 17, 1978 || New Jersey | W 119–109

| MECCA Arena | 24–21 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 46 || January 18, 1978 || @ Boston | L 116–130

| Boston Garden | 24–22 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 47 || January 19, 1978 || Denver | W 114–109

| MECCA Arena | 25–22 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 48 || January 22, 1978 || Chicago | W 112–90

| MECCA Arena | 26–22 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 49 || January 27, 1978 || @ Los Angeles | L 114–131

| The Forum | 26–23 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 50 || January 29, 1978 || @ Seattle | L 101–103

| Seattle Center Coliseum | 26–24 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 51 || January 31, 1978 || @ Portland | L 116–136

| Memorial Coliseum | 26–25

|-style="background:#fcc;" | 52 || February 2, 1978 || @ Golden State | L 116–136

| Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena | 26–26 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 53 || February 3, 1978 || @ Phoenix | L 105–115

| Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum | 26–27 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 54 || February 8, 1978 || Buffalo | W 104–103

| MECCA Arena | 27–27 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 55 || February 10, 1978 || Cleveland | W 108–98

| MECCA Arena | 28–27 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 56 || February 11, 1978 || @ New York | L 122–133

| Madison Square Garden | 28–28 |-style="background:#bbffbb;" | 57 || February 15, 1978 || New Orleans | W 112–99

| MECCA Arena | 29–28

Playoffs

|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 1 | April 11 | @ Phoenix | W 111–103 | Brian Winters (31) | Marques Johnson (16) | Quinn Buckner (8) | Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum12,161 | 1–0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 2 | April 14 | Phoenix | W 94–90 | Marques Johnson (33) | Dave Meyers (14) | Quinn Buckner (10) | MECCA Arena10,938 | 2–0

|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 1 | April 18 | @ Denver | L 103–119 | Alex English (26) | Dave Meyers (15) | Brian Winters (11) | McNichols Sports Arena17,297 | 0–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 2 | April 21 | @ Denver | L 111–127 | Marques Johnson (22) | Johnson, Meyers (5) | Lloyd Walton (8) | McNichols Sports Arena17,838 | 0–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 3 | April 23 | Denver | W 143–112 | Marques Johnson (35) | Marques Johnson (10) | Lloyd Walton (11) | MECCA Arena10,938 | 1–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 4 | April 25 | Denver | L 104–118 | Johnson, Winters (14) | Marques Johnson (7) | Brian Winters (6) | MECCA Arena10,938 | 1–3 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 5 | April 28 | @ Denver | W 117–112 | Marques Johnson (34) | Marques Johnson (17) | Winters, Buckner (9) | McNichols Sports Arena17,838 | 2–3 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 6 | April 30 | Denver | W 119–91 | Alex English (21) | Marques Johnson (17) | Marques Johnson (9) | MECCA Arena10,938 | 3–3 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 7 | May 3 | @ Denver | L 110–116 | Brian Winters (27) | Marques Johnson (16) | Quinn Buckner (10) | McNichols Sports Arena17,838 | 3–4

Player statistics

Season +Season Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG Brian Winters 80 34.4 46.3 84.0 3.1 4.9 1.6 0.3 19.9 Marques Johnson 80 34.6 52.2 73.6 10.6 2.4 1.2 1.3 19.5 Dave Meyers 80 30.2 46.1 72.2 6.7 3.0 1.1 0.6 14.7 Junior Bridgeman 82 22.9 50.3 81.0 3.5 2.1 0.9 0.4 13.6 82 18.9 54.2 72.7 4.8 1.6 0.5 0.7 9.6 Quinn Buckner 82 25.3 46.8 64.5 3.0 5.6 2.3 0.2 9.3 John Gianelli 82 28.4 48.8 64.2 6.2 2.3 0.7 1.1 8.5 Kent Benson 69 18.7 46.5 65.2 4.3 1.4 1.0 0.8 7.7 Ernie Grunfeld 73 17.3 44.3 65.7 2.7 2.0 0.7 0.3 6.9 Lloyd Walton 76 16.6 44.8 65.1 1.0 3.3 1.0 0.2 4.8 Kevin Restani 8 10.5 46.4 0.0 1.8 1.1 0.0 0.1 3.3 Jim Eakins 17 9.1 41.2 80.8 1.7 0.7 0.2 0.4 2.9 Rich Laurel 10 5.7 32.3 100.0 1.0 0.3 0.3 0.1 2.4 Scott Lloyd 14 8.0 36.4 60.0 1.9 0.6 0.2 0.4 2.1

Playoffs +Playoffs Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG Marques Johnson 9 35.7 54.9 75.0 12.4 3.4 1.1 1.9 24.0 Brian Winters 9 33.9 49.7 74.1 3.3 6.4 1.3 0.9 20.4 Alex English 9 23.1 61.5 78.1 4.7 1.4 0.7 0.8 13.4 Dave Meyers 9 31.0 44.4 66.7 8.2 3.9 0.8 1.2 12.9 Quinn Buckner 9 28.6 50.0 65.2 3.0 6.9 2.0 0.1 11.2 Junior Bridgeman 9 19.8 48.4 75.0 2.0 1.2 1.0 0.2 10.4 John Gianelli 9 32.2 42.4 76.9 6.4 1.6 0.9 1.2 7.8 Ernie Grunfeld 7 11.0 53.1 80.0 1.6 2.4 0.4 0.1 5.4 Lloyd Walton 9 13.8 48.6 61.5 0.4 4.1 0.9 0.3 4.7 Kent Benson 9 11.4 47.8 54.5 1.7 0.3 0.6 0.3 3.1 Jim Eakins 3 6.0 20.0 0.0 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.0 0.7

Awards and records Quinn Buckner, NBA All-Defensive Second Team Marques Johnson, NBA All-Rookie Team 1st Team On Friday, November 25, 1977, the day after Thanksgiving, and on the road, the Bucks overcame the largest 4th quarter deficit in NBA history, defeating the Atlanta Hawks after being down by 29 points with only 8:43 left in the game. Atlanta led 111–82 before Milwaukee went on a 35–4 run to win 117–115 in regulation. This record was set without the use of the three-point field goal, since its NBA inception was not until the 1979–80 season.

Transactions Trades June 7, 1977 To Milwaukee Bucks---- 1977 1st round pick (Marques Johnson) To Buffalo Braves---- Swen Nater 1977 1st round pick September 2, 1977 To Milwaukee Bucks---- John Gianelli To Buffalo Braves---- 1979 1st round draft pick (Roy Hamilton)

Free agents Player Signed Former teamJim EakinsJanuary 13, 1978San Antonio Spurs

References