SUMMARY
- The Milwaukee Bucks failed to win against the Indiana Pacers in Game 2.
- Damian Lillard addressed the Bucks' poor shooting that gave away the game to the Pacers during the second half.
After an incredibly successful start to the first-round series, Damian Lillard and the Milwaukee Bucks seemed confident. Especially with Giannis Antetokounmpo battling a calf injury, Milwaukee has a small chance of blowing out the Indiana Pacers to advance into the second round.
In Game 1, they found it quite easy to contain Tyrese Haliburton, and limiting his scoring was a major reason why they won. However, there were a few struggles in guarding Pascal Siakam. The Bucks heavily rely on Antetokounmpo to barrel through the taller players of the opposition team. His absence wound up handing over a Game 2 loss against the Pacers.
Damian Lillard urges his teammates to stay focused regardless of the pressure they face
It was evident since Game 1 that Indiana would try to study the Bucks well ahead of Game 2. Unlike Game 1 when Damian Lillard went all out scoring 35 points during the first half which propelled the Bucks’ run throughout the rest of the game. This wasn’t the case in Game 2 as the Pacers added more pressure on defense which crippled the Bucks’ shot-making ability.
Lillard addressed Milwaukee’s inability to sink shots by saying, “They picked up the pressure. They started to face guard and deny a little bit harder. And I just think we weren’t as organized as we needed to be when they defended that way.” He added, “Our offense is struggling with our spacing… You got to be focused. You’ve got to be able to execute through that even when you’re tired, even when the team is turning up the pressure.”
The Pacers were able to limit to Bucks to 44.2% on 86 attempts from the field while shooting 13-32 from deep. Milwaukee’s defense within the paint also dipped allowing the Pacers 52 points while being limited to 36 points under the rim.
Doc Rivers believes the Bucks’ offensive struggles negatively impacted their defense
Doc Rivers was hired by the Bucks a little while before the 2024 NBA All-Star Weekend. He hasn’t had the best run going 17-19 during the regular season. After the upsetting Game 2 loss, Rivers highlighted the Bucks’ poor shooting and claimed it also impacted their ability to stay focused on defense.
Pascal Siakam first two games of the playoffs:
Game 1: 36 PTS | 13 REB | 60 FG%
Game 2: 37 PTS | 11 REB | 69.6 FG%fifth player in NBA history to have 35+ PTS, 10+ REB & 60+ FG% in consecutive playoff games (Giannis Antetokounmpo, Tim Duncan, Shaquille O’Neal, Wilt… pic.twitter.com/AbKx9WAycq
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) April 24, 2024
He said, “I thought their [Pacers] pressure took us out of sets. I thought we struggled, execution-wise, on the offensive end. That bled over to the defensive end.” Rivers claimed that Siakam involved other players a bit more which also didn’t allow the Bucks to execute their game plan as much. Milwaukee will be heading over to the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis for Games 3 and 4.