Jason Kidd has preached all season long for his Milwaukee Bucks to simply give themselves a chance to win late in ball games, and the Bucks have done that in their first round playoffs series with the Bulls. But through three games, Milwaukee just hasn’t been able to finish off Chicago, and suddenly, their strong season is on the brink of its end.
The Bucks gave themselves several opportunities to win in Game 3 on Thursday night at the BMO Harris Bradley Center, including at the end of regulation and again at the end of the first overtime. But both last-second shots missed their mark and by the second extra period, Milwaukee’s tank was left on “E” resulting in a 113-106 loss to put them down 3-0 in the best of seven series. Though his team ultimately fell shot again, Coach Kidd was proud of the effort put in by his team over 58 minutes.
“The effort was there the whole night, he said. “The guys played their hearts out and gave us a chance to win.”
Despite dropping the first two games of the series at Chicago’s United Center, Milwaukee didn’t feel like this series had gotten away from them by any stretch—and before the game, Jason talked to his team about coming out with playoff-caliber intensity to protect home court.
“We want to come out with energy, with our effort and pace,” J-Kidd said before Game 3. “We don’t want to do anything outside the box; urgency sometimes can paralyze you and make you a guy that you shouldn’t be. So for us its about going out being ourselves, playing hard and have fun with it.”
The Bucks certainly did that from beginning to end, led in part by the play of Khris Middleton, who has been pacing the Bucks in every game — averaging 19.3 points per contest in the playoffs. Middleton scored 18 points in Game 3 including big baskets that helped erase an eight-point deficit in the final minutes of regulation. Middleton had a chance to clinch the win with a three from 27-feet in the final seconds of regulation, but missed, sending the game to overtime.
“I got a good look I felt,” Middleton said afterward. “I just missed it.”
After playing to a 27-27 draw in the first quarter, the Bucks broke the game wide open in the second. Behind an 11-0 run and a combined 18 points from Antetokounmpo and Jared Dudley, the Bucks built an 18-point lead, but the Bulls answered back with a strong run of their own, cutting Milwaukee’s edge to just four, 53-49, at the half.
“We played so well, especially the second quarter,” Dudley said. “Up 18, you can’t let a team like that go on a run. For them feeling good about themselves going into the second half, that was huge for them. You’ve got to give our team some props for battling in that fourth quarter, down 8 to 10. Khris hit some big shots. I thought we improved offensively and defensively we were solid and gave ourselves a chance. But that’s why they’re the Bulls.”
In the third, the Bulls heated up from deep, as Mike Dunleavy canned three shots from beyond the arc to put the visitors ahead 74-71 going into the final frame. In the fourth, it was Tony Snell’s turn for Chicago. The second-year reserve man nailed three trifectas, including back-to-back buckets to give the Bulls a 10-point lead with less than three minutes to go.
But even that spurt didn’t break the back or the spirit of Jason’s squad. Shortly thereafter, Middleton answered with back-to-back treys of his own to cut the deficit to two. After a John Henson free throw, Middleton hit from 14 feet out to give Milwaukee a 95-94 lead. Rose tied the game at 95 at the line but couldn’t sink both tries from the stripe. That left the Bucks with a shot at the win and Middleton had a good look at it, but his three-point attempt in the final seconds fell off the mark.
In the first overtime period, each team scored just six points. With 20 seconds left, Jimmy Butler heaved a three from the wing that missed badly with the game tied at 101, O.J. Mayo grabbed the rebound, giving the Bucks another opportunity to win the game. But Mayo’s mid-range jump shot also missed sending the game to double OT.
“In regulation we had a great look,” Jason said. “We’ve seen him make that look from that (left) side quite a few times. I thought he made the shots to get us back into the game in the fourth. Going down the stretch in the first overtime, we got the stop, and I thought it was best to play from there so they can’t set their defense. Unfortunately, we just didn’t execute the play.”
In the final overtime session, Chicago scored 12 straight points, six of which came from Derrick Rose. Rose had just nine points at halftime but took over in the second half and helped the Bulls build their lead before Milwaukee’s comeback.
Rose finished with 34 points and eight assists. Jimmy Butler added 24 points and Pau Gasol had 17 points and 14 rebounds. The Bulls went 14-of-33 from three-point range, including 5-of-9 by Rose. Michael Carter-Williams added 19 points and nine assists. John Henson played a strong role off the bench with 15 points and 14 rebounds in 39 minutes. Giannis Antetokounmpo tallied 25 points and 12 rebounds in 51 minutes for the Bucks.
“He was great,” J-Kidd said of Antetokounmpo. “He played well, he played hard. He set the tone early. The minutes weren’t a factor, he’s only 20. He played a really good game. He was able to attack and take what the defense gave him.”
NEXT UP
Now on the brink of elimination, the Bucks will have Friday to regroup before taking the floor at the Bradley Center once again on Saturday. They’ll host Chicago for Game 4 at 4:30 p.m. CT, and the game will air on TNT.
