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Truth be told, I can honestly say that I did not pay the Milwaukee Bucks much attention this season as they seem to have this knack of teasing their fans with their promise, but inevitably winding up disappointed. Yet this year, they are surprising some folks with their heady play, as a result, are in the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff hunt.

Credit rookie Brandon Jennings obviously, but you can also give the management of the franchise kudos for picking up John Salmons in a heist from the Chicago Bulls.

Friday night found the Bucks at Bradley Center taking on one of the better teams in the Western Conference, the Utah Jazz. Milwaukee dominated the first half and held on for the 95-87 win over Utah; the win was the Bucks’ fifth straight and 11th of their last 12.

The Jazz would play most of the second half without Andrei Kirilenko, who suffered a calf injury. Already ahead 57-51 midway through the third quarter, the Bucks took control with an 11-5 run that included a basket and a pair of assists by Carlos Delfino; Milwaukee led 68-56 with just under 4 minutes left in the period.

Meanwhile, Kirilenko, who had left the game halfway in the frame but had remained on the bench, went to the locker room still nursing the injury. Trailing 78-75, the Bucks went on a 9-2 spurt to take an 84-80 on a Jennings 3-pointer with 3:12 remaining in the game. Carlos Boozer would then score from within the paint to cut the lead to two with 2:28 left to go.

Salmons would then hit a pair of free throws, and Mehmet Okur missed a putback of a Deron Williams miss, calling for a foul in vain. Andrew Bogut then hit two free throws, but a foul sent Boozer to the charity stripe. He would make just one of two, and the Bucks led 87-83 with 1:33 remaining. Kyle Korver hit a jumper and C.J. Miles hit a pair of free throws to knot the game up at 87 with just 36 ticks left on the game clock.

Bogut got the ball inside and missed in the lane, but Ersan Ilyasova made the putback to put Milwaukee ahead  with 27.2 seconds left. Okur missed a 3-point shot attempt, and Salmons was fouled on the rebound. He would drain both free throws, giving the Bucks a four-point lead with 19.6 ticks left.

The end drew near as Boozer vehemently argued a non-call after a missed shot, claiming he was fouled; he would subsequently get tossed from the game.

Salmons led the Bucks with 24 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals while Jennings added 23 (including three treys) with 4 rebounds and 6 assists; Bogut chipped in 16 with 12 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 4 blocks.

The Jazz were led by Boozer with 26 points, 14 rebounds and 2 assists while Okur poured in 20 with 11 rebounds, an assist and 3 blocks; Miles came off the bench to score 17 with 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 steals.

Milwaukee (35-29) plays again on Sunday when they host the Indiana Pacers while Utah (42-23) travels to Oklahoma City to take on the Thunder – also on Sunday.