NBA Live : Bucks defeat Magic to make a comeback, Rockets & Heat register second victory
The NBA Eastern Conference top seed Milwaukee Bucks is back. Bucks defeated Orlando Magic in the second game of the 7 match series by 111-96 to keep their hopes alive of first NBA title since 1971.
Magic had created a flutter in the series opener as they had surprised top seed Bucks to take 1-0 lead. But in the second game on Thursday night, Bucks were back with a bang as Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 28 points.
In the games on Thursday night, James Harden led Houston Rockets beat Oklahoma City Thunder & Miami Heat defeated Indiana Pacers for their second straight victory in the 7 match series.
NBA Playoffs 2020 Live : Harden scores 21 points, Rockets beat Thunder for 2-0 lead
James Harden had 21 points and nine assists and the Houston Rockets made 19 of an NBA-record 56 3-point attempts to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 111-98 on Thursday for a 2-0 lead in the first-round Western Conference series.
For all the long-range shots, Harden said the Rockets actually won with defense. Houston held the Thunder to 39 points after the break.
“We played well,” he said. “We didn’t shoot the ball particularly well tonight. But I think defensively, especially in that second half, we did an unbelievable job just gearing in what they like to do and correcting our mishaps in that first half.”
Former Thunder star Russell Westbrook was out for the Rockets again with a right quad strain, but plenty of other Houston players picked up the slack. Danuel House Jr. scored 19 points.
“It’s not pride, it’s just team energy,” House said. “We want to make sure that guys are not caring about themselves so guys are showing great energy on the court and off the court.”
Oklahoma City dominated the second quarter and led 59-53 at halftime but in the end Rockets prevailed to lead 2-0.
NBA Playoffs 2020 Live : Robinson scores 24 as Heat beat Pacers 109-100 for 2-0 lead
Goran Dragic had a little simple advice for Duncan Robinson before Game 2: Just shoot.
Robinson listened, hitting his first six shots — all from 3-point range. He finished with 24 points and the Miami Heat beat the Indiana Pacers 109-100 on Thursday for a 2-0 lead in their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series.
“I don’t care if he miss 18 shots, 18 3s,” Dragic said. “`I want you to shoot every time. Don’t pump fake. We need you, and you can see it.’ He didn’t hesitate today, and that’s how we want him.”
Robinson opened the game by making the Heat’s first three buckets, all 3s. He didn’t miss until midway through the third quarter, and Robinson tied the Heat record for 3s in a playoff game with seven. He finished 7-of-8 shooting, all beyond the arc, in a big improvement from Tuesday when he was 2 of 8.
“Just felt a better rhythm in this one for whatever reason,” Robinson said. “But that can’t be the case for me. I got to kind of assert myself and not just have the game necessarily come to me, but be more aggressive. So I thought that was big and then obviously you see some go early, the hoop starts to look a little bigger.”
Dragic scored 20 points, Jimmy Butler had 18 points and six assists, rookie Tyler Herro added 15 points off the bench, and Jae Crowder scored 10.
Victor Oladipo, who had been questionable with an injured left eye, led Indiana with 22 points. Myles Turner and Malcom Brogdon each had 17 points. T.J. Warren had 14 and Aaron Holiday had 12.
Pacers coach Nate McMillan said they know Robinson is an elite shooter and expected the Heat would try to get him involved. Robinson made a team-record 270 3s during the regular season.
“We really set and talked about the first play of the game,” McMillan said. “We knew it was going to him, and sure enough, it went to him to try to get him going. He’s a big part of what they do, and he was able to knock down the first 3 and just stayed hot from behind the 3-point line all night.”
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