The Milwaukee Bucks went into Indiana in desperate need of a win. They played hard, and found a way to prevail.
The Milwaukee Bucks struggled to get on the board early in the first quarter on Saturday night, which may have been due to the starting line-up’s lack of court time together. Jason Kidd decided to add Michael Beasley and move Thon Maker to the center spot in his latest lineup change.
This line-up provides great spacing potential, but also leaves the defensive duties largely to Giannis. Thon seems susceptible to being drawn away from his man, leading to an easy lob pass for the opposing center.
The Bucks got into a groove, though, finishing the quarter with a 29-22 lead. The team showed signs of life for the first time since the Jabari Parker injury. They moved the ball well, hitting open shooters on the perimeter.
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The Pacers played to keep Giannis out of the lane, leaving him to find his teammates. He finished the quarter with five assists, and only two shot attempts. The Bucks’ star is back to playing with the ball in his hands.
Quarter number two started off kindly as well. The Milwaukee bench moved the ball and hit shots. The Bucks opened up their lead to 12 points behind three three-pointers in the first six minutes of the quarter.
Thon showed up big for the rest of the half with a dunk and two pick-and-pop threes, to give him eight first half points.
The bench had its best game in quite a long time. The second unit did an excellent job moving the ball leading to, Greg Monroe finishing with 17 points, Mirza Teletovic with 19 points, and Brogdon putting in 17 of his own.
Milwaukee went into the half up 62-52, with Giannis threatening a triple double, five points, four rebounds, and six assists.
The probable playoff-bound Pacers came into the second half with a lot more energy than the first half. Indiana played up the line, making it difficult for the Bucks to open space. When they did find a hole in the defense, they just happened to miss.
The Pacers erased the ten point halftime lead with eight minutes remaining in the third quarter.
But as your intoxicated family member would yell, IT’S A GAME OF RUNS.
Giannis, trying to prove to the Bucks’ fanbase that his hands ARE big enough to cradle them all for a nap, stepped up his energy and took over the game. Each possession was his possession. The Bucks would go on a 9-0 run of their own. Giannis put the Pacers’ fan base back in their seats with a dunk from 13 feet out (according to Jim Paschke on the broadcast), just inside the free throw line.
— Adam McGee (@AdamMcGee11) February 12, 2017
From that point forward, the Bucks played good basketball, opening their lead to 14 points heading into the fourth up 88-74.
The final quarter had a couple of moments that saw the Pacers cut the lead to eight points, but the Bucks never let them get any closer. Point Giannis helped the Bucks put the game out of reach with three consecutive assists to a Milwaukee guard from behind the arc.
Milwaukee would get their second win in nine games, outscoring Indiana by 116-100.