The set-up: The 26-38 NY Knicks come to Milwaukee off a 113-105 win at Orlando but considering the fact that they are currently 12th in the East, 5 1/2 games back of the final playoff spot, they are likely jockeying more for ping pong balls than postseason positioning. The 29-33 Milwaukee Bucks have pulled out of a lengthy funk that saw them drop out of playoff contention by winning three in a row and seven of their last 10. Milwaukee is now just 1 1/2 games behind the Detroit Pistons and Chicago Bulls, who occupy the final two spots in the East playoff race.

NY Knicks: The Kicks beat the Magic with Carmelo Anthony sitting out to rest a sore left knee. The 32-year-old small forward played 35 minutes in Sunday's loss to the Golden State Warriors but failed to reach 20 points in any of his last three games. One has to list this victory as a surprise, as the Knicks had lost 12 straight games without Anthony in the lineup. Anthony (23.2 & 6.0) is expected to play tonight. New York is trying to figure out which pieces it wants to keep in moving forward. The backcourt duo of Chasson Randle and Justin Holiday came off the bench on Monday and got a long look. Randle was signed after the Knicks waived veteran Brandon Jennings and he logged a career-high 26 minutes in the win and delivered seven points, five rebounds, five assists and no turnovers. Holiday, who has bounced in and out of the rotation this season, knocked down a pair of three-pointers and finished with 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting in 25 minutes.

Milwaukee: Losing Jabari Parker (20.1 & 6.1) for the season was a huge blow but the Bucks are 'dealing,' as of late. All-Star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (23.2-8.6-5.4) is 25-of-39 (64.1%) from the floor in the three contests plus the Bucks are happy to finally have last year's leading scorer,Khris Middleton (18.2 PPG last season), back in the lineup at shooting guard. He is averaging 19.3 points in four games this month. Malcolm Brogdon will remain in the starting lineup Wednesday when the Milwaukee Bucks kick off a three-game homestand, tonight. He leads all first-year players with a 42.8 percent shooting percentage from beyond the arc (that's seventh overall in the league) and is averaging 10.0 points and 4.1 assists, putting him third and first, respectively, among rookies.

The pick: There is optimism in Milwaukee and with good reason. The Bucks are in 10th place, 1 1/2 games behind Chicago for the eighth and final spot but only 2 1/2 games out of sixth place in the league. With three straight games at home, the Bucks have a chance to make a move. Bucks show more than a little defensive intensity in this one and the Under is an 8* play.