After playing a good first half in the series opener on Sunday night in Miami, the Milwaukee Bucks stretched their solid play against the Heat to 3-quarters last night, then went on to lose 98-86 to go down 2-games to none in the best-of-7 series.
Dwyane Wade scored 21 points and Lebron James added 19 to lead the Heat. Irsan Ilyasova had 21 and Mike Dunleavy added 16 in the loss.
In the opener on Sunday, it was Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis combining to score 48 points and they got little contribution from anybody else. This time, it was everybody else doing the scoring, while two starting guards combined for only 15-points.
The Bucks trailed 68-65 to start the fourth quarter and were right in the thick of things. But the Heat went on a 12-0 run to widen the gap and the Bucks never threatened from that point.
AUDIO: Coach Jim Boylan says the Bucks had their chance in the 4th quarter :18
The Bucks feel they made some progress but still trail in the series 2 games to nothing. They’ll host game 3 on Thursday night at the BMO Harris Bradley Center and the Bucks, if they have any chance in this series, will need to secure a win there.
Larry Sanders
Milwaukee Bucks forward Larry Sanders finished 3rd in the voting for the NBA’s Most Improved Player. Indiana’s Paul George won the award.
