Game of the season
Game 3 of the Eastern Conference is certainly the Khris Middleton performance of the season that remains freshest in the mind for all of the right reasons, but the truth is he did go even better late in the regular season.
As the LA Clippers made their sole visit of the season to Fiserv Forum on March 28, the Bucks found themselves closing on 60 wins and edging ever closer to securing the No. 1 seed in the East, while the Clippers themselves also had plenty of motivation to win from their place in a heated playoff battle.
Thanks to an incredible one-two punch from Middleton and Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Bucks prevailed in what was mostly incredibly comfortable fashion. Milwaukee’s two All-Stars delivered 73 points, but on this occasion it was Middleton who took the lead in the team’s offensive drive.
Middleton finished with a season-high 39 points and, perhaps most impressively, did so while only attempting three free throws in total.
The 27-year-old made up for that by going 16-of-25 from the field and 4-of-7 from three-point range. Middleton has rarely looked more confident with his shot than he did on this occasion, as he showed no hesitation in letting fly on the move or in catch and shoot scenarios. On top of that, Middleton was aggressive in driving to the rim and certainly scored more than his usual share of points inside.
Besides his scoring, Middleton also matched Antetokounmpo on the night as both players added nine rebounds and five assists to their box score tallies too.