Giannis Antetokounmpo scores joint season-low 13 points as Miami Heat become the first team to beat the Milwaukee Bucks twice this season
- Miami Heat got the better of Milwaukee Bucks for the second time this season
- Jae Crowder and Jimmy Butler each scored 18 points as the Heat eased to a win
- The Heat are the first team to beat the Bucks twice during this NBA season
- Bucks star man Giannis Antetokounmpo matched a season-low with 13 points
Miami Heat became the first team to beat Milwaukee Bucks twice this season on Monday night thanks to a 105-89 victory at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Jae Crowder and Jimmy Butler each scored 18 points and Goran Dragic added 15 as the Heat moved to 2-0 against the NBA‘s best team.
Bam Adebayo had 14 points and 12 rebounds for the Heat, who improved to 39-22 and matched their win total from last season with 19 games remaining. Kendrick Nunn had 13 points and Kelly Olynyk added 11 for Miami.
Jae Crowder starred as Miami Heat beat the Milwaukee Bucks for the second time this season
Jimmy Butler also scored 18 points as the Heat moved to 2-0 against the NBA’s best team
Bucks star man Giannis Antetokounmpo matched a disappointing season-low with 13 points
‘Collective effort,’ Crowder said. ‘All hands on deck.’
It was a season-low in points for the Bucks, set for the second straight day after Milwaukee managed only 93 in a win Sunday at Charlotte. The difference was from the three-point line: Miami was 18 for 37, Milwaukee was seven for 34.
‘Not saying we can hold great offensive teams like this regularly under 90 … but we have it in us to do it more consistently,’ Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.
Milwaukee has faced 21 of the 29 other NBA teams more than once this season. Most of those have had minimal, or no, success: Chicago and Orlando went 0-4, Atlanta, Cleveland, New York and Charlotte are 0-3.
The Heat clinched the season series, and Boston – which would have to sweep its last two matchups with the Bucks – is the only other Eastern Conference team with a chance to do that.
‘Tough game,’ Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said. ‘The physicality, the defensive activity from both teams was very good. Credit to Miami, they played very well on both ends, shot the ball well, they made tough shots. It wasn’t our night.’
Goran Dragic added 15 while the Heat were also dominant in defence against the Bucks
Bam Adebayo had 14 points and 12 rebounds for the Heat, who improved their record to 39-22
Brook Lopez led the Bucks with 21 points. Star man Giannis Antetokounmpo matched a season-low with 13 points on six for 18 shooting, and grabbed 15 rebounds.
‘The Heat, they’re a team that plays hard,’ Antetokounmpo said. ‘It’s not just hard for me, it’s hard for everybody. They just move the ball so much, they move their bodies, they just play hard.’
George Hill left with 4:33 remaining, after taking a knee to the midsection and staying down for a couple minutes. He was in obvious distress as he took a seat near the Milwaukee bench and did not return.
Hill finished with 12 points in 24 minutes. The Bucks were down 15 when he departed and emptied the bench not long afterward, conceding the ending.
Khris Middleton also scored 12 and Donte DiVincenzo scored 11 for the Bucks.
Brook Lopez led the Bucks with 21 points but couldn’t inspire his team to victory on the night
Giannis helps Dragic get back to his feet after a collision during the game in Miami
Miami led by one at the half, then pushed the lead to 12 late in the third and took an 81-70 lead into the final 12 minutes – after Dragic beat the buzzer with a quarter-ending three-pointer for the third consecutive game, this one as time expired.
He also made a beat-the-clock three to end the first half against Brooklyn on Saturday and another with two seconds left in the half against Dallas on Friday.
And the late lead didn’t get wasted, which had been a big problem for Miami in recent games – leading to losses against Cleveland, Atlanta and Minnesota in the last couple weeks.
‘We take away from this that we can compete at the highest level,’ Butler said. ‘But we know that we have to play this way every day from here on out.’