Khris Middleton
In desperate need of a win after six straight losses, the Milwaukee Bucks rallied to beat the Miami Heat 89-88 at the BMO Harris Bradley Center Tuesday night.
Milwaukee trailed 85-71 before scoring 14 straight points, part of an 18-3 run to close out the game, which ended in dramatic fashion.
Down by two guard Jerryd Bayless forced a jump ball against the Heat’s Michael Beasley with just over 10 seconds remaining, then won the jump despite giving up six inches in height. After Bayless missed a layup, Zaza Pachulia saved the ball right to Khris Middleton, who buried the game-winning three-pointer.
Prior to that shot, Middleton was 1-for-7 from outside the arc and shooting 4-of-16 overall. He finished with 13 points.
Ersan Ilyasova paced the Bucks with 19 points as five players reached double figures. Milwaukee committed at least 20 turnovers for the second straight game, but their defense kept the game within reach, holding the Heat to nine 4th quarter points.
The win gave the Bucks a sweep of the season series with Miami, who now sits 2.5 games back of Milwaukee for the Eastern Conference’s sixth seed.
The homestand continues with Indiana on Thursday (7pm) and West-leading Golden State on Saturday (7:30pm).