Watching the Milwaukee Bucks this postseason has been nothing short of a roller-coaster ride from start to finish.
It seems safe to say that tradition carried on during last night’s Game 4 of the NBA Finals with the Phoenix Suns. With Phoenix leading the series 2-1, Milwaukee had a golden opportunity to even things up with a win on their home floor, and their chances looked slim early on. The Bucks played awfully for a massive portion of this game, and just when they appeared dead in the water, they came roaring back to secure a 109-103 victory.
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Although it was undeniably an ugly win to say the very least, the Bucks once again showcased their collective resiliency by pulling out this much-needed come from behind win.
They did what they were supposed to and won both games on their home floor to even this series up at 2-2 with things heading back to The Valley. Before that game tips off in the coming days, here are three takeaways from a thrilling Game 4 between the Bucks and Suns last night.
The Milwaukee Bucks feast on second chance opportunities in Game 4 win over Phoenix Suns
The Bucks struggled to put points on the board for a majority of the contest, finishing the game shooting 40.2 percent from the floor and 24.1 percent from 3-point range.
Given that their jumpers were simply not falling with any consistency, the Bucks made a push to crash the glass on offense to keep drives going. It benefitted them mightily as they hauled in 17 offensive rebounds on the night as a team. They managed to capitalize on these extra chances by putting an impressive 19 second chance points on the scoreboard, helping inch their way back into this game bit by bit.
Receiving hefty minutes at the center position, Giannis Antetokounmpo proved to be a force on the glass by pulling down five offensive rebounds by himself. That amounted to how many the entire Phoenix team combined for the game. Pat Connaughton, P.J. Tucker, and Jrue Holiday all proved huge as well, as they grabbed three offensive boards apiece and helped keep several possessions alive and ultimately get Milwaukee the win.
The Bucks have always been keen on crashing the boards offensively, but it was abundantly clear they were extremely active in last night’s victory. Size has been a factor in this series thus far, and despite starting center Brook Lopez playing under 20 minutes, this dominance on the boards won Milwaukee the rebounding battle comfortably.
The Milwaukee Bucks survive Devin Booker’s historic night in Game 4 win over Phoenix Suns
After a lackluster performance in Game 3, it was obvious that Devin Booker would come out with a vengeance against the Bucks in Game 4.
He certainly did, looking like a man on a mission from the opening tip. Whether it was Jrue Holiday, P.J. Tucker, Giannis Antetokounmpo, or whoever else, Booker seemed unphased by the matchup and went on an untamable scoring tear. Hitting tough jumpers seemingly every single time he touched the ball, Booker looked virtually unstoppable for most of this game, and there were several moments where all the defender could do was tip their cap to the difficulty of the shot.
The 24-year-old would finish with an unbelievable 42 points on 60.7 percent shooting from the field and 8-of-9 from the free throw line. Despite Booker’s sensational night and some late-game controversy surrounding a no-call from the guard that would have seen him foul out, the Bucks managed to secure this win by the skin of their teeth. As Milwaukee mounted their late comeback, Booker found himself on the sidelines clinging to his fifth foul and would shoot just 2-of-6 on the floor when he was in the ballgame.
Still, Booker will rightfully receive praise for his stellar efforts in the game, while his supporting cast will be on the receiving end of criticism. Although Booker ran wild, Milwaukee did a solid job limiting the other players as Phoenix’s second-leading scorer was Jae Crowder with 15 points on 3-of-10 shooting, while Chris Paul followed with 10. CP3 would finish shooting just 5-of-13 from the field while logging five turnovers as the Bucks finally managed to slow him down.
The Milwaukee Bucks get a life-saving performance from Khris Middleton in Game 4 win over Phoenix Suns
It was yet another tremendously slow start for Khris Middleton offensively, but he was due for a breakout game offensively in this series.
In true Middleton fashion, the forward turned on the burners and went ballistic in this game to propel the Bucks to a victory. He would finish the contest with a playoff career-high 40 points, shooting 15-for-33 from the field, including 3-of-8 from behind the arc, highlighted by a clutch performance down the stretch in the fourth quarter. With just over two minutes left, Middleton took over the game and would score 10 points of the team’s final 12 points, the only exception being two free throws from Holiday to put them up by nine with mere seconds left.
The Bucks needed every bit of it as the contributions from their supporting cast were also scattered from top to bottom. After notching consecutive 40 point double-doubles, the Suns aimed to limit Antetokounmpo’s dominance on the offensive end, and it worked as he would finish with 26 points. However, the bigger story was Holiday, who had one of the worst shooting nights imaginable by going just 4-of-20 from the floor. With Antetokounmpo limited and Holiday stuck in a trance, Middleton stepped up to the plate and delivered yet another memorable performance in a postseason that has been full of them.
The Bucks and Suns will travel back to Phoenix for a crucial Game 5 this Saturday, and be sure to catch the action at 8:00 p.m. CST on ABC.