@WolfPack posted:Crushing quarter. Up 10 near end of 3rd,down 7 now
Brutal loss
The block/charges have all gone Boston's way here in the 4th, but that's not why they lost.
They lost because Holiday has been terrible and Horford has been unconscious.
The last time I saw something like this, it was Fred Van Vliet.
Holiday is 5 for 22.
Smart abuses Holiday on the other end as well.
This might be the worst game I've ever seen Holiday play as a Buck.
Wes Matthews gets knocked down by the hoop no call lol
Gotta have game 5 now. Middleton miracle?
Tatum literally throws up a prayer while falling down you know it’s Boston’s night.
Bucks have allowed 39 points in the 4th quarter.
Bucks are +1 in Giannis' 41 minutes. They are -9 in the 6 he has sat.
Bucks are in deep trouble.
Portis has become unplayable in this series. Holiday has been pathetic. Middleton won't play.
When your 2nd, 3rd, and 4th best offensive players don't (or can't) give you anything, you aren't going to win very often.
Did the Celtics miss a shot in the 4Q? Doesn’t seem like it.
Bucks have blown a big opportunity but what else is new. This team doesn’t make anything easy.
Bucks lose at home, 116-108.
Holiday has to snap out of it. This has to be his worst game as a Buck.
I guess I see it a little differently
The Bucks have not had one game they’ve shot well. Boston had a historic shooting game in #2 and that was a historic 4Q Fred Van Vleet like in this game. We should be throwing dirt on this team but I’m not so sure given last year. Someone other than Giannis has to step up.
God damnit.....🫤....{sigh}
Bucks were completely in control in the 3Q then Boston took over the 4Q and couldn’t miss. It’s not like Milwaukee didn’t play good D (mostly).
Now Bucks need to win 2 of 3. Will have to earn it now. Middleton can get healthy at any point.
@Tschmack posted:Bucks were completely in control in the 3Q then Boston took over the 4Q and couldn’t miss. It’s not like Milwaukee didn’t play good D (mostly).
Now Bucks need to win 2 of 3. Will have to earn it now. Middleton can get healthy at any point.
Holiday and Portis were terrible. A combined 7 for 29 from the floor and 1 for 7 from three. 20 points on 29 shots.
Horford and Smart were great. 19 for 27 and 7 for 10 from three. 48 points on 27 shots.
That's the game.
If Holiday/Portis shoot 30% and Horford/Smart shoot 50%, it's about a 17 point swing.
@Tschmack posted:I guess I see it a little differently
The Bucks have not had one game they’ve shot well. Boston had a historic shooting game in #2 and that was a historic 4Q Fred Van Vleet like in this game. We should be throwing dirt on this team but I’m not so sure given last year. Someone other than Giannis has to step up.
Middleton was here last year. Many on this board complain about him, but he can get to his spots in the half court and get off decent looks against almost anyone. Holiday just isn't big enough to do that. He's a guy you want taking pressure shots wide open in playoff games. He's not the guy you want isolating in the half court against bigger guys. Middleton is 4 inches taller with a 6'11" wingspan. Asking Holiday to do what Middleton does in playoff games is trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. The problem is the only other guy that can get his own shot off in the half court that they have besides Giannis is Portis, and he was also terrible tonight.
You have to love Portis. He was back on the court after the game tonight shooting. Well after the game, he hadn't even showered yet.
I said in the game 3 thread, whoever won game 4 would have an 80% chance of winning the series going forward. I still stand by that statement unfortunately. I am not optimistic for the Bucks’ chances.
As others have said, we need someone on the Bucks to get hot from 3 point land to complement Giannis’ play around the rim. It hasn’t really happened yet. Even if by some miracle Middleton could play, there’s ko guarantee we’d see the “on” version of Khris.
Here’s to hoping Coach Bud can push the right buttons, but it’s going to be tough. A huge opportunity to really put the Celtics back on their heels was lost tonight.
Celtics were 16-19 on shots in the 4Q. That’s historic for them given their playoff history.
So you have game 2 and game 4 - Boston had massive output offensively in a way that wasn’t normal. Giannis was really good in game 3, but not like he played at an all time level. Bucks need that IMO to win the next 2 of 3.
I’m only going to use last year as a reference point given that no Middleton continues to be challenge for the Bucks.
Still, it’s 2-2 and quite honestly Milwaukee hasn’t played a decent game yet. On the other hand, Boston essentially pulled out two miracles in their win(s). They shot an unbelievable 3pt barrage in game 2 and they were unconscious in the 4Q of last nights game. Not sure I can recall a playoff team going 16-19 in one quarter of playoff basketball, but as MP2 mentioned it reminded me of Fred Van Vleet going crazy.
If following this team has taught me anything it’s that the Bucks seem to do a good job of responding in these situations. Of course the national media has already declared the Bucks DOA but it would not surprise me to see them take game 5 and then try to finish them off in game 6. For whatever reason, they seem to dig deep and come up big when their backs are against the wall. At some point the shots needs to fall. And how many big games can Al Horford have?
The last point I’ll make is if the Bucks won game 4 but lost game 5 they are in the same situation if they win tomorrow night. Up 3-2 with a chance to finish off the Celtics in game 6. I expect they will play with urgency as I don’t think they want any part of a game 7 in Boston.
Go Bucks.
Sir Charles in the postgame said Middleton brought balance to the Bucks offense and others aren't stepping up. Thought Portis was too tentative in his shots as a poster above noted and that could have affected him. Like my old football coach used to say, "When you're thinkin' you're stinkin'" it's still true in any sport.
It will interesting to see what adjustments Bud makes for Game 5. Do they now stay home on Horford and give Tatum easier looks? That's the calculation they need to make.
This captures how bad Holiday has been in this series.
https://twitter.com/FlyByKnite...s-bucks-nba-playoffs
Through four games against Boston.
Giannis ON, Jrue ON: 127 minutes, -12
Giannis ON, Jrue OFF: 28 minutes, +23 G
iannis OFF, Jrue ON: 32 minutes, -27
It was a bit puzzling to see them play Hill as much as they did (23 minutes) and Portis only played 15 minutes. They need Bobby to play more since he’s a scoring threat.
Getting Portis untracked to me is the key to getting the series, and maybe Holiday coming at least half way out of his funk.
@Tschmack posted:It was a bit puzzling to see them play Hill as much as they did (23 minutes) and Portis only played 15 minutes. They need Bobby to play more since he’s a scoring threat.
I think Connaughton got hurt last night. That also was a killer since he's been a great clutch playoff shooter. Hill got those minutes instead of Carter because I guess they feel that Carter will get posted up constantly by Brown, Smart, or Tatum because he's barely 6 foot tall.
