With the Heat currently the eighth seed in the east, the Bucks’ struggles in Miami certainly didn’t bode well for the playoffs. Milwaukee lost 87-94 on December 22nd, scoring a record-low eight first quarter points. Unfortunately, the Bucks were in a similar predicament Friday. The deer were down 20 at halftime, and the franchise was 0-77 all-time on the road with the deficit. But, hey, it’s March. Crazy events occur (although hopefully not at the Forum). What commenced may be a footnote in a season full of exclamation points, but it’s one that should assure fans of who’s the favorite in an April rematch.
HALFTIME OF HORROR
The Heat need every win possible to stay in the playoffs. So it was understandable to be so excited with a big lead.
https://twitter.com/MiamiHEAT/status/1106722621826174976
And the Bucks? Well, the Bucks had five blocks!
BETTER TRAIL
In the December loss, Ted Davis reasoned it was a “schedule loss”. Not a bad excuse at all. But if the Bucks want to play in June they need to win a game they’re not supposed to. And Giannis refused to dribble out the second-half clock. He scored a wicked 33 points and added an insane no-look pass (4:08).
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By the time the rim stopped rattling, the Bucks became the first team ever to turn a 20-point halftime hole to a 15 point wrong-way blowout. The first half was so bad even the Bucks’ reel had Heat highlights. But the team refused to give up, knowing every game counts until the best record is clinched.
Oh, and that smug Heat Twitter guy? Very quickly, he was a man of few words.
https://twitter.com/MiamiHEAT/status/1106743726632812550
At 52-17, the Bucks don’t need any affirmations of confidence. The doubters can’t have clearer evidence. But it was reasonable to worry about the effort on an “eh” night. Thankfully Giannis and Coach Bud refuse to accept the moral license of an off game. The Bucks took care of business despite being without Malcolm Brogdon (foot) for the majority of the game. Brogdon is now out indefinitely, but Milwaukee’s depth is well-prepared for something like this. And if any playoff opponent dares take a double-digit lead? All they’ll do is provoke the Greek Freak as he terrorizes a turnaround.
