The Chicago Bulls caused a stir on Wednesday night, beating the Milwaukee Bucks 114-109 in Game 2 of their first-round series, which is now tied 1-1. A crucial Game 3 is scheduled for Friday night in Chicago as the Bulls will host their first postseason game since 2017.
DeMar DeRozan was spectacular, hitting hard bucket after bucket en route to a playoff career-high 41 points to lead the Bulls. His driver layup with 18.2 seconds remaining pushed the lead to five, essentially ending the game. Nikola Vucevic and Zach LaVine also played well, scoring 44 points together to add to DeRozan’s points.
Giannis Antetokounmpo led the way for the Bucks, finishing with 33 points, 19 rebounds and nine assists. It wasn’t enough for a Bucks team that made too many errors – 15 turnovers – and finished the game without Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis. Middleton suffered an MCL sprain and will have an MRI on Thursday, while Portis went home with an eye abrasion that affected his vision.
Here are some key takeaways from the game:
DeRozan puts on a show
DeMar DeRozan had a tough time in Game 1 of this series, scoring 18 points on 6 of 25 from the field. Despite the tough night, he kept his confidence and told reporters he would bounce back in Game 2.
He was a man of his word. Less than a minute into the game, DeRozan drove to the basket to take the first points of the night and never looked back. His final line was a playoff career-high 41 points, seven rebounds and four assists on 16 of 31 from the field. As great as these numbers are, they don’t quite do justice to its performance.
Seeing it live was a very special experience. Everyone in the arena knew what they were up to, and no one could stop it. Time and time again, he would catch the ball at the top of the button, work his way into a rhythm, and hit a pull-up jumper, often right in the face of a defender. Late in the third quarter in particular, he hit two ridiculous shots over Giannis.
“He’s a great player,” said Giannis. “He’s a guy that’s difficult to guard because he wants to do those shots from medium range. He wants to get his points, has great balance, great rhythm. He’s going to take a lot of those shots. He did it in the regular season, he did it tonight. But at the end of the day I feel like we contested every shot. As if it wasn’t open.
“We did our job but at the end of the day sometimes you do your job and it’s not enough,” Giannis continued. “But hey, you have to give him credit. He was very, very good tonight. He played incredibly.”
Even when the Bucks had some success in the fourth quarter and slowed him down – Jrue Holiday had a notable block on one of his knights – he just kept attacking. The persistence paid off as he came to the line for two big free throws with 90 seconds left and then drove to the rim a few possessions later for a hard bucket to seal the win with 18.2 seconds left.
Bucks’ injuries are a cause for concern
As the Bucks attempted a comeback in the fourth quarter, Khris Middleton drove to the basket, launched a spin and slipped in a wet spot. That bit of bad luck could have a big impact on the series. Middleton’s left leg gave out when he awkwardly crashed to the ground, and Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer revealed after the game that he suffered an MCL sprain.
There’s no timeline for Middleton’s return and the team will know more after an MRI on Thursday, but that’s clearly bad news for the Bucks.
“It’s tough,” Giannis said. “I know that feeling. You don’t want to talk to anyone because you really don’t know what it is. Until tomorrow you expect the worst and hope for the best. But at the end of the day he knows we’re by his side. Me don’t need to say it to the media. He knows he’s my brother no matter what. We need him to win. We’ll pray, I’ll pray for the best. Hopefully it’s not that bad.”
Even at their best, Middleton seems set for a time on the sidelines that would leave them without one of their best and most versatile players. In the regular season, the Bucks were 37-10 when all three of Middleton, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday played. If one or more of them were out, they were 14-21.
Middleton’s knee wasn’t the only injury concern for the Bucks in Game 2. They also spent most of the game without Bobby Portis, who caught an elbow late in the first quarter and didn’t return due to vision problems. Portis has been officially diagnosed with an eye abrasion and Budenholzer appeared to be hoping that wouldn’t keep him out of Game 3, but it’s something to monitor.