Apr 27, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bulls forward Tony Snell (20) is defended by Milwaukee Bucks guard Khris Middleton (22) in game five of the first round of the 2015 NBA Playoffs at United Center. The Bucks won 94-88. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports
The Bucks Defense, Especially From Long-Range
The Bucks got their easiest win of the series over the Bulls in Game 5. The Bulls had their best game of the series in regards to turnovers, blocks, personal fouls and trips to the free-throw line. So what gives?
| Chicago Bulls | Team | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rk | G | Tm | Opp | FGA | FG% | 3PA | 3P% | FTA | FT% | ORB | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | PF |
| 1 | 1 | 103 | 91 | 83 | .458 | 32 | .375 | 22 | .682 | 10 | 52 | 30 | 8 | 7 | 19 | 21 |
| 2 | 2 | 91 | 82 | 81 | .383 | 33 | .364 | 27 | .630 | 14 | 64 | 26 | 2 | 10 | 13 | 19 |
| 3 | 3 | 113 | 106 | 89 | .449 | 33 | .424 | 24 | .792 | 12 | 50 | 25 | 11 | 6 | 16 | 20 |
| 4 | 4 | 90 | 92 | 68 | .485 | 18 | .556 | 20 | .700 | 5 | 39 | 23 | 10 | 7 | 26 | 20 |
| 5 | 5 | 88 | 94 | 90 | .344 | 22 | .182 | 29 | .759 | 17 | 45 | 22 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 19 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 4/30/2015.
The Bucks finally got out and defended the three-point line. The first three games of the series the Bulls shot at least 32 threes per game, and they made over 35 percent of them in each of those games. The results? Chicago takes a 3-0 lead in the series early.
Game 4 saw Milwaukee barely winning in double overtime. The Bulls made over 55 percent of their threes, but only attempted 18. In Game 5 Milwaukee won by the largest margin of the postseason so far, and they held Chicago to 18 percent from three-point territory.
I think you can see where I’m going with this. If the Bucks can continue to swarm shooters and stop the Bulls from getting good looks from deep, they can hold Chicago’s offense just like they did on Monday in their huge win. Which means they have a good chance at pulling off two more wins in this tightly contested series.
Next: Is Coach Thibodeau Running The Bulls Too Hard?