At the end of the third quarter, Kevin Durant left Giannis Antetokounmpo behind, MVP and Reigning NBA Defender, to place the definitive exclamation point to the beating of the Brooklyn Nets on the Milwaukee Bucks by 125-86, a scavenger who places the 2-0 favorable to New Yorkers in the tie.
KD’s past hoop basket, a boast of all the basketball he treasures, was not the only one that he took the colors out of Anteto. There was another break in the first quarter that already made it clear that Durant has been able to regain his maximum level despite the physical problems he has accumulated in recent years.
James harden, injured from the sidelines, cheered his teammates up like crazy, especially the two remaining members of the ‘big three’ who at the moment are walking through the tie. Last night’s beating reached blushing numbers, with the Nets leading by up to 49 advantage points and ending with the most bulky triumph in its history in a playoffs.
“We are capable of achieving greatness every night”, valued Kyrie Irving after the bulky win. The question now is: can the Bucks stop this greatness?
Durant scored 32 points, grabbed 4 rebounds and delivered 6 assists in three quarters, since the last period was transformed into a pure procedure at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Irving complemented KD with 22 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists. in a choral effort that also included Joe Harris and Bruce Brown, Harden’s replacement in the starting five, both with 13 points.
Milwaukee was 34 points behind his average of this regular season as the best attacking team in the league, a slab that weighed even more when in the first quarter it became clear that not even Anteto could stop Durant’s will in attack.
“We have done what we had to do, win two games at home,” KD commented at a press conference to reduce the euphoria. “We have to see if this game travels with us to Milwaukee and we have to stay focused.”.
Brooklyn broke the hips of the Milwaukee defenders on breaks and they threw the most free shots, ending with a series of 21 of 42 from the perimeter, a lethal 52% success rate.
Anteto stayed at 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Bucks, and a basketball lesson from another MVP like Durant left him staring blankly in the fourth quarter. Fighting the uneasiness is the first task for Milwaukee, which has already accumulated several disappointments in the last NBA postseason.
“We feel that we are better than what we show on the track, and we know it”, valued Jrue Holiday, who contributed only 13 points last night. “Right now we can’t be sad, we have to stay positive”. Khris Middleton, who started badly in the first game, had an insufficient 17 points last night.
The last two meetings in May between both teams, precisely in Milwaukee, ended with a local victory with the absence of Harden for Brooklyn. The story of the second game ended as soon as it started.
Durant scored 13 points and he did not rest a second to put the 36-19 in the locker in the opening period. The second quarter started soon with +20 and it was KD’s break over Anteto, who put the +30 at the end of the third period, that seated the most starters in the last.
“We have not played well in general, and we have to play better from start to finish”said Mike Budenholzer. Probably for his players he had other less obvious and friendly explanations than for the public.