They got run in game. Two jonas and middleton got to work early in game. Three attack the rim. I think that’s what everybody wanted to see. Giannis do middleton. You can get him. However, you want him first quarter. They each had 15 points. Bucks led by as many as 21 in the first but led by just three at the half a little over five to go the nets down three five to go in the third low scoring affair. Oh don’t! Let this man get hot kevin. Durant ties things up at 57. moments later pj, tucker and durant see a couple of texas longhorns. These guys are, you guys, are close they’re tight, uh, oh chin, to chin. There were some things said. It was heated double technicals for durant and tucker. They laughed it off, they dapped it up. I think we’re good heat of the moment. Fourth quarter, this is like low scoring 90s nba basketball. Middleton hits the j middleton again 35 and 15 bucks lead by two we’re tied at 80. durant, Music eye hole from deep 30, 11 and 5 for the thin man nets up three drew holiday attacks. The rim smart play that gives the bucks a one point: lead people in milwaukee not giving up the faith. Our wild sequence here, who’s going to take the last shot. Well, kyrie kind of loses it. It ends up in the hands of brown. He attacks. The rim ends up in the hands of giannis getting away from him, while there’s a foul situation.
He didn’t go to the line, but free throws were made, which means nets trail by three. He can’t foul durant because he’ll go into that shooting motion. Quick gets the shot up nearly goes afterwards. The bucks who got the win talked about defense Music. We strive for our defense, defense. First, defense, wins, wins, games and they’ve won they’ve won championship, so i think to be able to get a stop. Um even down with two seconds left means a lot end of the day. Win is a win it doesn’t matter. If you win by 30 doesn’t matter, if you mean by one, if you can go back home and um celebrate, uh milwaukee essentially made the nets unrecognizable, brooklyn’s 83 points the fewest in any game, regular season or playoffs. This season kevin durant, his first playoff game with less than 40 shooting since 2018 brooklyn managed just 0.63 points per drive. Steve nash asked about offensive execution down the stretch like what happened there late. We all know that we won kevin and kai to shoot the ball, but if they don’t get free, you know they got to make the right play, and so we made the right play um. You know you give some credit to the bucks and um. You know still we got some makeable looks we can get better at executing. We can get better at handling those moments and it was a great test for us tonight and i think there’s a lot for us to learn from it.
We have a few in the game, plays that we like to practice and run through. We had an opportunity to execute and we failed to do so so ended up in bruce’s hands with with a contested layup. You know usually bruce puts us in a great position to at least have something at the rim that goes in, but tonight just didn’t go for us. We welcome in tim, legler now and and tim. The nets haven’t had a ton of one possession games late and when they do often it’s in the hands of james harden, we saw what happened there. Kyrie lost it and kind of a mad scramble there, but obviously miss harden at any point. But in those situations in particular, how much do you miss having not having harden on the floor? Uh, you miss him with tons scott, because that’s the way that they’ve directed their team all year, it’s really his show. He dictates possessions he’s, not on the floor. They haven’t been in that situation. Very often, i know it’s katie and kyrie irving and you just think well just go create offense but it’s, just not something that they have been doing together. It’S big, but for me the biggest sequence of this game came down to a two play: defense leading to offense and tomorrow you’re, going to see the 68 points in the box score by their two best players out of 86. I think that’s the story, but that’s not really the story for me.

They don’t win this game without what brook lopez does on the defensive end of the floor? Let’S take a look right here. First of all, look how high out on the floor. He is for a seven footer that is dangerous territory to be in, but he has to be because kyrie’s coming off now watch as this develops, if lopez right now is not squared up, if he’s even off a little bit to the side, kyrie irving is going To get downhill and now you’re going to engage the back line and he’s got options for shooters, but that’s not what happens as you can see. Lopez stays in front and now on this roll by brown to the rim. Look at the amount of ground lopez covers to get back, he stops ball and retreats back and then the last part is gets up in the air that’s as good as it gets that’s hand on hand contest at a critical time in the game. Now take a look here. I love this you’re gon na see a couple different guys on the sidelines say play on. Why is this important? Because if they call timeout, i have a feeling that ball is going to end up in the hands of yanuzanskupo and iso, and i don’t like that late. Instead, they say play on watch what you holiday recognizes. As he comes up now. Kevin durant is back here. He’S, looking at the ball blake griffin’s, looking at the ball, it looks like they should have this thing contained with two defenders, but watch what you holiday does very very smart when he takes this ball to the middle.
You can see both griffin and durant assume that that ball is going to be contained, there’s nowhere to go, but take a look. What holiday does he spins back and kevin durant? Never moves from this spot back here and he’s able to get to the rim by playing on at a critical time, no timeout put the ball in the hands of a playmaker and trust somebody besides giannis late middleton’s been great for them in that situation. This is one of the reasons you brought in your holiday. Scott was to have moments like this he’s an accomplished offensive player didn’t have a great night, but i like the fact that they trusted him out of the backcourt, with the biggest possession of the game and now milwaukee’s, at least in this series, drew’s, the smartest guy. As you could find in that situation found an advantage and exploited it, and i feel like the giannis late conversation you and i have had late as i’ve been sitting here. Looking at you there’s not a lot to love there. You know i mean he’s searching for something and i and and they’ve got middleton and late that’s, where the bucks went. What’S middleton offer that giannis late in clocks and late in games just doesn’t an answer in the mid range area to floor giannis just doesn’t have that in his game, giannis is either going to be a guy that you saw tonight. He’Ll pull up and take some threes, some questionable.
Obviously he wants to get to the rim, but in certain possessions, late there’s going to be five bodies in the paint and now you’re gon na be forced to possibly pull up, make it 18 footer chris middleton that’s. His shot that’s his money shot and if you take a look at the way, nba games are closed out. That is the shot that is most often available and chris middleton has come through for them. He did it in the last round as well against miami and winning game one. They went to him late in this one. I just think it’s a far better solution for that team. Late giannis tends to want it a little too much. He forces the action and he doesn’t have that versatility in the mid range he was sensational so was middleton but late in the game. I do like either of those options middleton or holiday better if they find themselves in that position again. It almost seems, like tim you’re, suggesting everything doesn’t have to be at the rim or a three i that’s astounding, who knew right in the modern nba right who would have thought? Well, i mean that is the area that wins games right there. Well, if middleton’s gon na get that shot and make that shot and score 35 you’re gon na win some games, and they did tonight hard fought. Tim always appreciate talk soon. Okay, you got it. Scott giannis and middleton account for 79.
1 percent of milwaukee’s points 68. In the 86., if you tell them before the game, you’re going to score 86 they’re going to think, oh god we got trucked again, they didn’t that’s the highest percentage by a duo in nba postseason history. That distinction was held by tim duncan and antonio daniels, who combined for 64 of the spurs 81 in game, two of the 2001 western conference finals against the lakers that’s.
