Zach Heilprin

Giannis scores 41, Bucks dominate Phoenix in Game 3 win

The Milwaukee Bucks have made their presence felt in the NBA Finals, outscoring Phoenix by 25 points in the second and third quarters on the way to a 120-100 win in Game 3 to cut the Suns lead to 2-1.

Phoenix actually led by three after the first quarter and was shooting 50-percent from the field. But the Bucks came to life inside a raucous Fiserv Forum to close the second quarter on a 30-9 run to take a 15-point halftime lead. The Suns didn't go away, though, climbing to within four in the third quarter before Milwaukee answered with another huge run that included scoring 16 straight points to end the period. It would be all the Bucks needed, as Phoenix never challenged in the fourth quarter.

Giannis Antetokounmpo put together another huge effort. He had 18 points at halftime and ended up with 41 points and 13 rebounds. It allowed him to become just the second player in league history to post 40-plus points and 10-plus rebounds in back-to-back NBA Finals games, joining Shaquille O'Neal. Antetokounmpo also went 13-for-17 from the free throw line, the third-most makes in his playoff career.

"We know what kind of game this was going to be," Antetokounmpo said. "We knew that if we lose the game, you are in a hole, 3-0 or whatever the case might be. We knew that we had to come here and play great basketball."

While the two-time MVP brought it like he has for much of the playoffs, guard Jrue Holiday made his presence felt on the offensive end for the first time in the series. He drilled a 3-pointer for the first basket of the game and went on to hit four more, including three timely ones in the third quarter. Holiday ended up with 21 points, nine assists and the Bucks were 22 points better than Phoenix when he was on the floor.

"He's a great player," Antetokounmpo said of Holiday. "We need him to keep playing like this. We trust him. He's our leader. He's our point guard. He's one of our scorers. He's one of our defenders. He's a great basketball player, and he's going to keep figuring out ways to be successful."

Bobby Portis gave the club a huge lift of the bench both in scoring (11 points), rebounding (eight rebounds) and a ton of energy, while Khris Middleton was also better, scoring 18 points after managing just 11 points in Game 2.

One of the keys to the win was limiting Phoenix's backcourt of Chris Paul and Devin Booker. The duo was held to 29 points, including just 10 from Booker. He was just 3-for-14 from the field and ended up sitting out the entire fourth quarter.

"It wasn't (good), obviously," Booker said of his offensive struggles. "But there's nights like that. The most important part to me is winning the game and we didn't do that, so I'm more frustrated about that. But we have a few days off here. We're going to get back right and going to go over film and be ready Wednesday."

Coming into the game the Bucks were in an 0-2 hole for the second time in these playoffs. Like they did the previous time against Brooklyn in a series they would eventually win in seven games, Milwaukee showed it wouldn't go quietly just because it lost the first two games on the road.

"I think it's just our toughness, being able to go through a lot of adversity during the season and playoff runs, knowing that as long as we've still got five guys that can go out and play we've still got a chance," Middleton said. "I think that's most important. That we have all the confidence in the world in each one of our guys. Whoever steps out on the court that we can get the job done."

The Bucks improved to 8-1 at home this postseason and there is no doubt they've fed off the atmosphere inside the arena and out. There were actually more fans in the Deer District (25,000 plus) outside than the number in the arena (17,000).

"Just having these guys here that really believe in us and trust in us, and having 20,000, 30,000, 40,000 fans outside just going crazy and having 17,000 inside, it's just a great time to be a Buck right now and it's a great time for the city of Milwaukee," Portis said. "It's real diverse out there. See a lot of people just mingling and being together. I think just us winning and impacting the city has brought the city together."

Milwaukee will try to even the series in Game 4 on Wednesday at Fiserv Forum.

by Zach Heilprin

Bucks fall again in Phoenix, drop into 0-2 hole in NBA Finals

If Milwaukee is going to claim its first NBA title in 50 years it will have to claw out of an 0-2 hole after Phoenix won Game 2 118-108 Thursday night.

The second quarter proved too much to overcome for the Bucks. After taking a 29-26 lead following the first period, the Suns outscored Milwaukee by 14 points and went into the half with an 11-point lead. The Bucks made several runs in the third and fourth quarters but were never able to get closer than four as they fell to 0-4 against Phoenix this season.

Mikal Bridges was a problem throughout. He scored 13 points in the first half and finished with a playoff career-high 27 points. But Chris Paul and Devin Booker also proved to be Buck killers again. The duo combined for 54 points and that included Booker going 7-for-12 from beyond the arc. As a team, Phoenix shot 50-percent (20-for-40) on 3-pointers.

Giannis Antetokounmpo was more than up to the challenge. The two-time NBA MVP scored a playoff career-high 42 points, topping the 41 he had in the 2019 first round against Detroit. It including 20 in the third quarter, which was the third-most by any player in a single quarter in an NBA Finals game since Michael Jordan in 1993. He added 12 rebounds, four assists and three blocks.

However, Milwaukee's other two stars -- Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday -- struggled offensively. They were just 12-for-37 from the field and combined for 28 points. Middleton had just 11 points, his fewest in a playoff game since the first round of the 2020 postseason. Phoenix was actually 15 points better than the Bucks when Middleton was on the floor. Holiday, meanwhile, is now shooting 31.4% through the first two games.

Pat Connaughton gave Milwaukee a lift off the bench by scoring 14 points (4-for-9 on 3P), but the rest of the reserves had only seven points.

The Bucks are now facing an 0-2 hole for a second time in these playoffs. They were able to erase that against Brooklyn in the second round to become just the 30th team in playoff history to comeback after going down two games to start a series. They'll look to start that process again when Game 3 tips on Sunday night in Milwaukee.

by Zach Heilprin

Giannis returns but Bucks lose Game 1 in Phoenix

Milwaukee got Giannis Antetokounmpo back for Game 1 of the NBA Finals, but it didn't matter as Phoenix pulled away for a 118-105 victory Tuesday night.

Playing just a week after suffering a hyperextended knee in the Eastern Conference Finals, the two-time MVP started and looked no worse for wear in the first half, scoring 10 points, grabbing nine rebounds and dishing out three assists. He also had one of defensive plays of the postseason, chasing down Mikal Bridges and blocking his shot off the backboard.

"I felt good," Antetokounmpo said afterward. "I don't feel pain. I can run. I can jump. I can set screens. I can rebound the ball. I can do stuff.

"I'm good. I'm happy. I'm happy that I'm out there."

https://twitter.com/Bucks/status/1412594047428878336?s=20

His efforts helped the Bucks trail by eight at the half. In the third quarter, though, everything fell apart as Chris Paul took over. The 36-year-old went 6-for-7 from the floor, routinely getting good looks off defensive mismatches as the Suns outscored Milwaukee 35-27 to take a 16-point lead to the fourth quarter.

"I think I could have done a better job in trusting my teammates more behind me and try to make them put the ball on the floor more," said Brook Lopez, who frequently had to switch defensive assignment and cover Paul. "But he hit tough shots. That's what he does. That's what he's done his whole career and he did that tonight."

Phoenix's lead increased to 20 before the Bucks went on a run to cut it to single digits. But they didn't have enough to get over the hump and the Suns improved to 12-0 when holding a double-digit lead in these playoffs.

Paul finished with a game-high 32 points and eight assists. He became just the third player that was 36 years old or older to post 30 or more points in an NBA finals game. His backcourt mate, Devin Booker, added 27 points, while big man Deandre Ayton had 22 points and 19 rebounds.

Antetokounmpo ended up playing 35 minutes and finished with 20 points and 17 rebounds. Khris Middleton had a quiet first half before scoring 10 in the third quarter and ending up with 29 points (12-for-26 FGs) to lead the way for Milwaukee. Brook Lopez chipped in 17 points and six rebounds.

It was a tough night for Jrue Holiday. The veteran guard making his NBA Finals debut had 10 points, but he was just 4-for-14 from the field. He did offer up nine assists and grabbed seven rebounds.

"I think I had a bad shooting night. I had a lot of opportunities to make layups and shots and they weren't falling," Holiday said. "Again, I think I do a little bit more than scoring, just getting people plays and threes and driving to the basket, but me personally, I didn't shoot well tonight."

While Holiday didn't, the Bucks as a team actually shot it well from beyond the arc, a rarity this postseason. They went 16-for-36 from deep, including Middleton hitting five 3-pointers. But they couldn't overcome the huge advantage the Suns had at the free throw line. Phoenix shot 26 free throws and hit 25 of them. The Bucks, in comparison, were just 9-for-16 and Middleton didn't have a single attempt, which was just the eighth time in 62 career playoff games that's happened.

"It's tough, you know, teams have been getting up in me lately," Middleton said. "Just got to try to play through it. Can't try to wait for the officials to bail me out. Just try to be strong with it. If they call a foul, they call a foul. But lately, they haven't, so I've just have to play better, be stronger."

Milwaukee has now lost Game 1 of three-straight playoff series. The club lost the first two games in the second round to Brooklyn before coming back and winning in seven games. They also lost Game 1 to Atlanta in the Eastern Conference Finals, but were able to recover and win four of the next five games to punch their ticket to the NBA Finals.

"I think it's IQ," Holiday said of what allows them to deal with deficits and overcome them. "I think it's character. I think it's going through things during the season for us to get to this point and make adjustments. I also think it's playing against different teams in the playoffs. Miami was different from Brooklyn and Brooklyn was different from Atlanta. We have a lot of references to go back to."

The Bucks and Suns will meet for Game 2 on Thursday in Phoenix.

by Zach Heilprin

Giannis upgraded to questionable for Game 1 of NBA Finals

Giannis Antetokounmpo is making progress in his return from a hyperextended knee as evidenced by Milwaukee upgrading him from doubtful to questionable for Game 1 of the NBA Finals Tuesday night in Phoenix.

The Milwaukee superstar was on the court and went through some drills Monday.

"He's had a good day," coach Mike Budenholzer said. "He's making good progress. But I don't have expectations either way."

Antetokounmpo missed roughly the last 2 1/2 games against Atlanta in the Eastern Conference Finals after sustaining the injury in the third quarter of Game 4. He sat behind the bench during Game 5 but was constantly talking with teammates. When the Bucks clinched the series in Game 6, Antetokounmpo was front and center on the bench, standing most of the game.

"I couldn't tell you, man," Middleton said when asked if thought Antetokounmpo would play Tuesday night. "I expected him to play the next game (of the Eastern Conference Finals) or come back the day he got injured. He still wasn't out there, so I couldn't tell you."

The decision to play or sit is not solely up to Antetokounmpo. It will involve Budenholzer and the team's medical staff.

"Just tell him to do what's best for himself and his family," Middleton said of his advice for his teammate. "Don't rush back in and put yourself at a greater risk for a greater injury. But he's a guy, like you know, he puts in so much time and effort into his body to be the best version of himself."

Surprisingly, at least to some outside the building, Milwaukee won both games that Antetokounmpo missed, leaving some to joke they are a better team without him on the floor. That's not the case but his absence has forced others into bigger roles as the team looks for its first NBA title since 1971.

"Obviously, you're talking about a guy that puts up 30 points a night. You're talking about a guy that rebounds the basketball, passes the basketball, defends as well, if not better, than anybody else," guard Pat Connaughton said. "You're not going to necessarily replace that with one guy or with one thing.

"The way we've tried to make sure we've put our best foot forward to have his back while he's out is doing it together. Obviously, Khris, Jrue (Holiday), Bobby (Portis), there's been a bunch of guys that have stepped up in his absence, but it's been a collective group effort. It's been playing together. It's been sharing the basketball. It's been defending as a team and gang rebounding and doing all of the little things that it takes to win a basketball game so that we can try to put ourselves in this position to get to the Finals to give Giannis some more time to get healthy because, without him, we wouldn't be here."

by Zach Heilprin