The Pacers won a 125-108 break in Game 2 against the Bucks, taking full advantage of Giannis Antetokounmpo’s gap to dominate the paint, in a night in which they were in a creative mood and dished out 38 assists for 50 baskets.
The Pacers made it 1-1 in the series with the Bucks for the first round of the NBA playoffs, winning 125-108 in Game 2 at the Fiserv Forum. The match was quite close for about 38-39 minutes, but then the visitors put their foot on the gas and opened the gap.
Indiana took full advantage of Giannis Antetokounmpo’s absence to make a play on the Bucks’ racket, while on the other hand, the hosts did not have the necessary size to hit the paint. It is indicative that the racket points were 36-52 (8-22 in the first half).
That combined with the Deer’s shooting from the perimeter, which began to decline of late (they were 6/13 from 3-pointers in the first period and finished the game 13/32) brought the negative result for Doc Rivers’ team.
Pascal Siakam was the big star for Rick Carlisle’s team, scoring 37 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists. Miles Turner and Andrew followed Nemhardt with 22 and 20 points respectively. Tyrese Halliburton had a double-double with 12 points, 12 assists. The Pacers set an organization record with 38 assists for 50 baskets.
On the Bucks side, Dame Lillard, who had 35 points in Game 1 (all in the first half of the match), scored 34 this time (6/13 three-pointers), including 26 before the break. Brook Lopez, Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis offered some solutions at intervals, but it wasn’t enough.
The program of the series
- Game 1: Bucks – Pacers 109-94
- Game 2: Bucks – Pacers 108-125
- Game 3: Pacers – Bucks | in the early hours of April 27 at 00:30
- Game 4: Pacers – Bucks | dawn of April 29 at 02:00
- Game 5: Bucks – Pacers | early morning of May 1 (if necessary)
- Game 6: Pacers – Bucks | early morning of May 3 (if needed)
- Game 7: Bucks – Pacers | early morning of May 5 (if needed)
THE DODECALEPTA: 26-30, 55-60, 83-92, 108-125
MILWAUKEE BUCKS (Doc Rivers): Middleton 15 (5 rebounds, 6 assists), Portis 14 (11 rebounds), Lopez 22 (6/7 3-pointers), Beverley 5, Lillard 34 (6/13 3-pointers, 4 rebounds, 5 assists), Beasley 4, Crowder 2, Connaughton 5 (7 rebounds), Green 5, Jackson 2, Botham, Livingston
INDIANA PACERS (Rick Carlisle): Nismith 11 (3/8 threes, 5 rebounds, 7 assists) , Siakam 37 (3/4 threes, 11 rebounds, 6 assists), Turner 22 (3/6 threes, 7 rebounds, 6 assists) , Nemhardt 20 (1), Halliburton 12 (3/7 threes, 12 assists), Toppin 9 (1/5 threes, 8 rebounds), Sheppard 8 (2), McConnell 6 (4 assists), Walker, Brown
Milwaukee Bucks team stats: 25/54 2-pointers, 13/32 3-pointers, 19/21 shots, 43 rebounds, 24 assists, 4 steals, 4 blocks, 7 turnovers, 13 fouls
Indiana Pacers team stats: 34/54 2-pointers, 16/36 3-pointers, 9/14 shots, 52 rebounds, 38 assists, 3 steals, 6 blocks, 5 turnovers, 18 fouls
