The Bucks went into Tuesday night’s Game 2 matchup against their renewed rivals, the Indiana Pacers, on a high. Despite being the higher seed, the Bucks went into Game 1 as underdogs to some, having lost the season series against the Pacers and being without Giannis, undoubtedly the best player between the two teams. However, the home team still came out ahead – and in sizable fashion – as Damian Lillard went off and Wisconsin’s own Tyrese Haliburton struggled offensively.
Milwaukee looked to match Sunday’s performance and take a 2-0 lead in the series, putting the team in a great position for when Giannis can hopefully return. Unfortunately for the Bucks, they weren’t able to build off Fiserv Forum’s home court advantage, as Indiana evened the series, 1-1, as it now heads to Indianapolis for Games 3 and 4.
Here’s our breakdown of the Bucks’ 125-108 loss to the Indiana Pacers, by the numbers:
26 – Points for Dame in the first half
It was Dame Time again during the first half of Game 2 on Tuesday night. Although the Bucks were slightly down at halftime, Lillard put up 26 points in the first half on 7-of-12 field goals. His performance throughout the game – and in the first half especially – kept the game close.
15 – Days since Giannis’ injury
With the series tied and home court now in the hands of the Pacers, the Bucks are missing Giannis’ presence now more than ever. It’s been 15 days since the Greek Freak’s injury, and his teammates and Bucks fans can’t wait to have him back to help the team win back home court advantage as the series shifts to Indianapolis.
12 – Points for Tyrese Haliburton
One positive from Tuesday’s game was the Bucks’ ability to again limit Wisconsin native Tyrese Haliburton to a low point total. Although he had a double-double with 12 assists, Haliburton only had 12 points in Tuesday night’s game.
37 – Points for Pascal Siakam
One Pacer who had no trouble scoring last night was forward Pascal Siakam. Siakam scored a game-high 37 points against Milwaukee – and did so at an efficient rate. Adding 11 rebounds and six assists to his point total, Siakam was the biggest reason that Indiana was able to even the series.
17,683 – Screaming fans at Fiserv Forum
Milwaukee came out in massive numbers to support the Giannis-less Bucks on a weekday night. The screaming crowd of nearly 18,000 fans was a beautiful reminder that playoff basketball is back in Milwaukee.
10 – Straight postseason defeats for Indiana coming into Tuesday
With Tuesday’s victory, the Pacers finally broke their 10-game postseason losing streak – one that began with a Game 7 loss in 2018 to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Milwaukee hopes to start a new streak for Indiana in just a few days.
-27 – Plus-minus for Pat Bev
The Bucks’ defensive specialist struggled against Indiana. Logging 34-minutes, the Bucks were minus 27 when Patrick Beverley was on the court, the worst among all players. Beverley is tasked with defending some of Indiana’s best scorers, and fans should expect him to redeem himself in Game 3.
125 – Points for the Pacers
Sunday night’s Bucks victory was largely due to Milwaukee’s ability to hold the Pacers to under 100 points. The Pacers averaged a league-best 123.3 points per game during the regular season. On Sunday they didn’t come close, while on Tuesday they topped their regular season average.
1-1. – Where the series currently stands
The series is all tied up, and although the Bucks would have loved to take both of the first two games, they were still able to split the first two games without the Greek Freak and against a team that had their number in the regular season. The Bucks now travel to Indiana to continue the series with Game 3 in Indiana on Friday at 4:30 p.m.
