3 Game 1 factors that could be crucial in Game 2 between Bucks and Pacers

The Bucks taking care of the glass

There was only one aspect where the Bucks got outperformed on Sunday, and that was the offensive rebounding. The Pacers got 14 of them, which led to 16 points. The only reason this wasn't such a big problem is because Milwaukee had a huge lead, but in a closer game, a few easy baskets like this can make the difference between winning or losing.

With Giannis Antetokounmpo out, the Bucks really lack paint presence, especially when either Brook Lopez or Bobby Portis are on the bench. Siakam playing at the power forward position gives Indiana some size advantage most times, which he exploited by having five offensive rebounds and punishing the Bucks' lack of commitement on the end. Even if height matters on these plays, there were quite a few possessions where you could feel only one team was trying to get the ball.

This can't happen again, and there's actually not much that Rivers can do to fix it. There are only two centers on the roster, and they're going to need some rest, so he can't just play them both and ask them to grab every missed shot. And even if he did that, it might not even solve the problem because rebounding is more of a team effort than most people realize.

The Bucks feel like they sometimes trust Giannis too much with this task because backcourt players don't box out all that much and don't always seem to be ready to take the ball when it goes far from the rim. Even if you have a super dominant rebounder, taking opponents out of the paint is a simple way of making his life easy, and it gets even more crucial when that dominant rebounder is out.

Now, the Bucks are left with Lopez, who at times feels so worried about the box out that he forgets to grab the ball, and Portis, who puts his effort into this job but is undersized against certain centers and can struggle a bit. So, if backcourt players don't help, you're not really winning this battle.

And this isn't even a battle they need to win, but one they'd better don't lose. At least not as clearly as they did. They already did a good job taking some easy transition points out for the Pacers, so if they negate these easy second-chance points, they'll put themselves in an even better position.

We'll see if they can do it on Tuesday night.