Milwaukee Bucks: 3 things to build on from Game 1 win over Heat

Milwaukee Bucks’ supporting stars step up in face of Giannis Antetokounmpo’s struggles

The Heat have long been a thorn in Giannis Antetokounmpo’s side, even beyond his struggles during last year’s Conference Semifinals series. Game 1 was certainly no different.

Once again, the Heat loaded up on the two-time MVP by packing up the paint and forcing him to take tough midrange fadeaways. Although Antetokounmpo started to hit these shots during the regular season, he went 0-6 on his mid-range looks during the overtime win. With a grinded down game stemming from Miami’s slow pace counteracting Antetokounmpo’s strengths, Khris Middleton picked up the charge a bit like last year and with Jrue Holiday by his side.

Middleton had a tough night defensively running around screens chasing Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro. Expending a lot of energy defensively, it was a tough time for him to get started offensively in the first half, though Middleton rose up down the stretch to hit big shots just when their offense needed it and saved his biggest shot for last.

Meanwhile, Holiday had an amazing night on both ends of the floor and ended up with a double-double to finish the night. His trade to Milwaukee has definitely shown great results as the Bucks get a two-way secondary shot creator they desperately needed for the playoffs. Holiday came up big in the 3rd quarter by scoring a team-high 11 points that made up a little more than half of his 20 points for the day.

All in all, the Bucks definitely came out a changed team after last year’s upset run. They are switching more on defense, are unlocking Giannis more in the mid-range and figuring out their defensive rotations against the Heat. Their new additions in Holiday, Tucker, Bobby Portis and Bryn Forbes have been really good in the regular season with Donte DiVincenzo getting better on both ends of the floor.

If the Big 3 is able to maintain their form and get enough reinforcements off the bench, this series will be Milwaukee’s to lose.

We’ll just have to see what’s in store for the Bucks going into their Game 2 clash with the Miami Heat.