Rapid Recap: Bucks 142, Pacers 133

Behind a massive night from Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Milwaukee Bucks capped off a season sweep of the Indiana Pacers with a 142-133 victory at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Giannis looked as dominating as ever, dunking Indy into oblivion with 40 points on 14/18 shooting, 15 boards, and 6 assists. Justin Holiday was the high man for the Pacers with 26, including a blistering 6/7 start beyond the arc.

NBA.com Box Score

The Bucks didn’t look great on defense for much of the first half but managed to hold slim leads at the end of the first two quarters. As it has often lately during this defensive slump, it seemed like the only way they could keep up sometimes is by making their shots on the other end. Milwaukee clung to a 69-66 lead at halftime.

In the third quarter, though, the Bucks flipped the script completely. They instantly went on a 10-0 run and scored 40 in the period, entering the fourth up 13. Giannis absolutely took over with 23 second-half points, mostly thanks to hitting 10 of his 14 free throws. Indiana just had no answer for him but to foul, because if they didn’t he’d throw down another thunderous dunk (see below). Milwaukee mostly kept the lead in double-digits during the fourth en route to a 9 point win.

Stat That Stood Out

Milwaukee scored a sensational 78 points in the paint tonight to Indiana’s 50, and somehow managed to largely compensate for the Pacers’ hot perimeter shooting by pummeling them at the rim.

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