On May 1, Beijing time, in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs G5, the Pacers vs the Bucks away. The Pacers currently lead 3-1 and a win today would advance to the second round against the Knicks and the 76ers. Antetokounmpo (calf soleus muscle strain) and Lillard (Achilles tendon strain) are out for this game, and the Bucks have a hard time.
Antetokounmpo didn't play a single series, while Lillard played in the first three. The team's boss and second are all injured, and the Bucks are the worst team in this year's playoffs! Bucks starters: Beverley, Beasley, Middleton, Portis, Da Luo. Pacers starters: Haliburton, Nembhard, Nesmith, Siakam, Turner.
Without Antetokounmpo and Lillard, the Bucks would have to rely on Middleton. In the first quarter today, he scored 10 points and 3 rebounds on 3-of-6 shooting. G3 and G4, Middleton scored a total of 67 points, but the Bucks lost all. The Pacers blossomed more, with nine players on the court and seven scoring in the first quarter. Turner was 3-of-4 for seven points, two rebounds and two assists.
At the end of the first quarter, the Pacers led by eight points at 31-23. The Pacers made 7-of-13 three-pointers, while the Bucks made just 2-of-7. At the beginning of the second quarter, the Pacers let the bench players play half the quarter in order to exhaust the Bucks' physical strength. But the offense of these substitutes was really stretched, and they only scored five points in six minutes. The Bucks completed a 16-5 comeback, and Beverley began to perform.
Heibei first had a friction with Toppin, and the referee blew for a technical foul on Toppin. Beverley then singled Haliburton 2+1, and then sent a gesture too small to taunt. Beverley missed 0-of-0 in the first quarter and scored 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting in the second quarter. The Bucks went 30-17 in the first quarter, and at the end of the first half, the Bucks were 53-48 ahead by five points.
The Pacers relied too much on outside touch, making 2-of-8 three-pointers in the second quarter and not many other offensive options. Siakam was in poor form, scoring just six points on 2-of-7 shooting in the half, and he scored 36+13 and 37+11 in the first two games of the series. At the beginning of the third quarter, the Pacers continued to float outside to shoot, and the Bucks went on an 11-2 run to lead directly to double digits.
The Pacers seemed to have committed suicide, and in the third quarter, they directly sacrificed a five-man lineup, with the Bucks Da Luo and Portis both on the court, and the interior line was in demand. With 5:24 left in the third quarter, the Bucks led by 15 points at 72-57. The Pacers have no height, no frame protection, no rebounds, as long as they can't shoot, the defense is for nothing, and the point difference comes to 20+!
At the end of the third quarter, the Bucks led by a full 20 points, 87-67. Middleton had 24 points and 10 rebounds in the first three quarters, Portis had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and the Bucks had 12 rebounds on a 37-25 run. The Pacers made 0-of-5 three-pointers in a single quarter, and they didn't score any big open spots. There was no suspense in the entire fourth quarter, and the whole court was over, and the Bucks defeated the Pacers 115-92 to chase 2-3!
Beverley was 4-of-7 from the field, with 13 points, 4 rebounds, 12 assists, 2 steals and 1 block, with a game-high plus/minus of +36 and an assist-breaking career record. Portis scored a career-high 29 points and 10 rebounds on 14-of-24 shooting, Middleton had 29 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, Haliburton had 16 points, four rebounds and six assists, and Siakam had 12 points, four rebounds and two assists.
The Bucks' two cores were absent, and the Pacers actually lost by 23 points. At this level, even if you advance to the next round, it's not easy to play! Finally, let's take a look at the data and talk about your mood: