Bucks, Clippers Drop Games to Pacers, Mavs
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 24 Apr 2024
Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Clippers become the first higher-seeded teams to fall in defeats at home in the first round of the current NBA playoffs, losing to #6 Indiana Pacers and #5 Dallas Mavericks today.
The Bucks really felt the absence of ace big man Giannis Antetokounmpo and fell prey to the Pascal Siakam-powered Pacers, 125-108 at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee.
At the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, the Clippers dropped game two, 96-93 to Dallas, which involved more Mavs to spoil the long-awaited return of Kawhi Leonard.
Siakam reintroduced himself to Bucks fans, this time sporting a new uniform since he helped the Toronto Raptors defeat a Giannis-led Bucks in the 2019 Eastern Conference Finals and made his presence felt.
Giannis' absence, on the other hand, was truly felt by the Bucks, who were badly outplayed in the painted area by an array of Pacers big men headed by Siakam, who topped for Indiana with 37 points plus 11 rebounds. Indiana center Myles Turner scored 22 points and had 7 rebounds, and reserve Obi Toppin scored 9 points and pulled down 8 boards as the Pacers outrebounded the Bucks.
Andrew Nembhard with 20 points, Tyrese Haliburton with 12 points, and Aaron Nesmith with 11 points provided supporting firepower for the Pacers.
Damian Lillard led the Bucks with 35 points, followed by Khris Middleton who scored 15 points in support of their remaining big men Brook Lopez (22 points) and Bobby Portis (14 points).
The Mavs gambled with the anticipated adjustments in the Clippers' ball rotation caused by Leonard's return, and they were rewarded with the lead from the get-go up to halftime, which ended 45-41 in their favor with James Harden carrying the scoring load for the Clippers.
Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving still spearheaded the Mavs' offensive, but this time they involved other Mavs such as PJ Washington and Derrick Jones in scoring as LAC's Paul George and Leonard began to rediscover their team-up, making the game a nip and tuck affair.
But the Mavs proved steadier at the finish, while the Clippers' offense seemed to desert them.
Doncic and Irving led the Mavs with 32 points and 23 points, respectively, drawing 18 points from Washington and 10 from Jones.
Harden and George scored 22 points each, with center Ivica Zubac adding 19 points. Leonard showed he still has to get back into the groove of things, chipping in only 15 markers.
With both series now tied at 1-1, it's the turn of Indiana and Dallas to host the next two games.
In the other scheduled game, the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Phoenix Suns, 105-93, to bring a 2-0 series lead as they travel to Phoenix.
The author Teodoro Medina Reynoso is a veteran boxing radio talk show host living in the Philippines. He can be reached at teddyreynoso@yahoo.com and by phone 09215309477.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Teodoro Medina Reynoso.
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