Three takeaways from Milwaukee Bucks’ second straight loss to the Miami Heat
The Milwaukee Bucks faltered anew against the Miami Heat, absorbing a 111-95 loss with their star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo sitting out on Saturday night.
The Bucks ended their four-game road trip at 2-2—with the two losses dealt by the Heat after starting out with back-to-back wins against the New York Knicks (111-107) and the Atlanta Hawks (114-105).
Limited firepower
The Bucks also lost to the Heat on Thursday night, 108-102. Milwaukee didn’t have Antetokounmpo in that six-point loss, and with the two-time MVP missing in action again due to left knee soreness, the Heat scored a repeat.
Milwaukee usually turns to the Greek Freak for scoring, and without him, the Bucks’ offense sputtered. No Milwaukee player breached the 20-point scoring mark. Bobby Portis Jr. was the top scorer for the Bucks with 15 points.
It was actually a collective effort for the Bucks as Portis’ fellow starters finished in double figures. Pat Connaughton tallied 14 points, Brook Lopez finished with 13, while Jrue Holiday and Grayson Allen added 12 points each.
The Bucks were badly out-rebounded by the Heat, 32-51—something that would have not happened if only Antetokounmpo was around. Milwaukee could only muster 26 points in the paint while Miami had 54.
Scorching Miami Heat
The Heat played without Tyler Herro (Achilles soreness) and Kyle Lowry (knee discomfort) but scoring was never a problem for them in this match.
Gabe Vincent erupted for 27 points, while Bam Adebayo feasted in the paint with 20 points and 13 rebounds.
Victor Oladipo contributed 20 points and Jimmy Butler had 16 for the Heat.
Milwaukee fought hard despite its depleted roster
The Bucks started slow and trailed at the end of the first period, 28-20. Miami led by as many as 15 in the second period but Milwaukee kept fighting back and trimmed the deficit to just eight at the half, 45-53.
Vincent keyed Miami’s strong first half showing by unloading 21 of his total output in the first two quarters of play. For a while, the Bucks looked ready to pull off a huge comeback when they rallied within 62-63, midway through the third period.
Miami answered with six unanswered points to stretch its lead to 69-62. The game was never really close since then as the Heat went on to lead by as many as 19 points to win the game pulling away. Oladipo finished what Vincent started, as he scored 14 of his total production in the final half.
