INDIANAPOLIS — The Milwaukee Bucks are heading home facing elimination without much clarity on the injury statuses of their two top scorers, Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf) and Damian Lillard (Achilles).
The star tandem suffered a 126-113 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Sunday night as the Bucks fell to 3-1 in this best-of-seven, first-round series. Game 5 is Tuesday in Milwaukee.
Already shorthanded, the Bucks’ road to victory in Game 4 became even more difficult when forward Bobby Portis was ejected in the opening quarter after a scuffle with Indiana guard Andrew Nembhard.
“It’s tough, your two best players are down, and then you lose one of your best players who has been playing off the bench all year and is now in a starting role,” Bucks forward Khris Middleton said. score.
Portis received a double technical foul by the officials for two hostile acts following a play in which he tangled with Nembhard while trying to gain position for a rebound with 5:01 remaining in the first quarter. After Nembhard pushed Portis’ hand away, Portis pushed it back, then made contact with Nembhard’s head.
It was Portis’s first ejection in a playoff game. He played seven minutes and scored four points on 2-of-4 shooting.
“For most of the year (Portis) has done a great job of toeing that line and not crossing it,” Middleton said. “Tonight he came through it at the worst time for us.”
Still, the Bucks trailed by only three points at halftime, but the Pacers outscored them by 10 points in the third quarter. Indiana set a franchise record for most 3-pointers in a playoff game with 22 (on 43 attempts, 51.2%).
After losing its last five series in the first round, Indiana is set to reach the conference semifinals for the first time since 2013–14, when it reached the East finals.
“In Game 1, I felt like they set the pace. I would say that’s been the story the last three games,” Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton said. “In a world and league that says, ‘Oh, you can’t play fast in the playoffs,’ we don’t really believe that. We’re going to continue to be who we are and leave our mark and our mark on every game.” “
Sunday marked the 13th time a team has been without its top two regular season scorers during a playoff game, according to ESPN Stats & Information research. Those teams are now 0-13.
“Our guys were playing their hearts out,” Bucks coach Doc Rivers said. “I like that our team, no matter what anyone thought, we believed we could win this game. It shows a lot about this team. What I like most about it is that they Were disappointed that they could not win the game.
“It’s a great group to train with. I’m telling you. I know we’ve got a lot of stuff going on. There’s just chaos. There’s injuries. But man, I love this team every moment I Am with them. And tonight is another example.”
Before the game, Rivers gave an update on Lillard, who took his walking boot off the field Sunday but did not participate in any on-court activity. However, Rivers insisted that the Bucks have not ruled him out of the remaining games of this series.
Rivers provided perhaps his most optimistic update yet regarding Antetokounmpo. After the Bucks’ two-time MVP participated in an on-court workout Sunday morning that included shooting and running with resistance, Rivers said he is still optimistic Antetokounmpo can bounce back in this series.
“I think he has a chance to play in this series,” Rivers said. “I really do.”
Despite the 3–1 series loss, Bucks players stressed that they did not want Antetokounmpo to return until he was ready to play.
“He’s the best player on the team, but obviously we don’t want him to put himself in any danger that he shouldn’t be in,” Bucks center Brook Lopez said. “He’s going through all the rehab, handling it the right way, getting his treatment done. He’s been around the team, which has been great for us.
“For guys going into Game 5, we’ve got to prepare the same way we’ve been preparing, and we’ll see what happens. We just want Giannis to do whatever is the smartest thing for him to do. “
Rivers said the Bucks will now focus on Tuesday with or without Antetokounmpo and Lillard.
“One game at a time,” he said. “We have two games left at home. They have one game left at home. You can look at it this way. The first thing is we have to win the first game at home. We can talk about the rest after that. “
