Jimmy Butler scores 56 as Bucks blow 15-point lead to lose 119-114 to Heat
MIAMI – The Milwaukee Bucks welcomed Giannis Antetokounmpo back onto the court Monday night, but they head back to Fiserv Forum in a huge hole in dropping Game 4, 119-114, to the Miami Heat at the Kaseya Center.
The Bucks led by as many as 15 points with 1 minute, 28 seconds to go in the third quarter before surrendering the game.
The Bucks are the no. 1 overall seed in the NBA playoffs after finishing with the league’s best record, but now face a Herculean task down 3-1 as the series shifts back to Milwaukee for Game 5 on Wednesday. A team has come back from such a deficit just 13 times in NBA history – with Denver doing it twice in 2020.
“We just gotta go home and win a game,” Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer said. “We talked about it in the locker room. We gotta go to Milwaukee and win a game. Life is not complicated. That’s what we gotta go do.”
Giannis’ return not enough
The Bucks superstar was in pain Monday night. The winces. The reflexive reach to his back. The Bucks staff working his lower back with a massage gun in the timeouts.
BOX SCORE: Heat 119, Bucks 114
But he had a spring in his step, too, after more than a week without playing following a fall in Game 1 on April 16.
“Big, you know," Jrue Holiday said of Antetokounmpo's return. "He’s our best player. We always know he’s going to fight and try to do what he can to go get us a win. We know he put his body on the line.”
He used that quickness to adroitly maneuver around Heat defenders, doing his best to avoid the full-bore contact that so often sends him sprawling. But he still attacked the paint, going 8 for 12 in that area for 16 points. But he also only shot two free throws (making one).
To go with his 17 points, he also handed out six assists, drawing multiple defenders to him and giving his teammates open looks, resulting in an additional 17 points. Antetokounmpo, who did not speak to the media after the game, also pulled down seven rebounds, helping to get the Bucks out into transition and a more free-flowing offense.
The Heat (and perhaps the back) slowed Antetokounmpo down a little bit in the second half, as he would score just nine more points and hand out six more assists – though it was enough for him to record his third career playoff triple-double. He finished with 26 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds in 38 minutes on 12-of-22 shooting.
“I thought Giannis was mostly phenomenal," Budenholzer said. "Thirteen assists. I thought he found guys and made the right play. He got to the basket and finished. I’m not sure what more Giannis could’ve done. I thought his passing and playmaking was fantastic. So, we’ll look at the film and see where everybody could be better, but for Giannis to come back and play tonight and play the way he did is very encouraging.”
It was not enough, however, to keep the surging Heat down the stretch.
Khris Middleton fouled out with 14 points on just 4-of-12 shooting and Jrue Holiday had 14 points on 6-of-19 shooting.
Brook Lopez, the beneficiary of many Antetokounmpo feeds, led the Bucks with 33 points and 11 rebounds.
Jimmy Butler’s Herculean effort carries Heat
Jimmy Butler nearly beat the essentially full-strength Bucks through sheer force of will. The Marquette University alumnus was sublime in the first quarter when the Heat needed him – and when the Bucks looked ready to try and throw early knockout blows behind the return of their MVP.
Milwaukee threw everything at him defensively, but he made 9 of 10 shots – including 2 three-pointers – for 22 points in keeping his team connected at 33-28 after one. He played every minute of the frame, too.
The rest of the Heat was 2 for 9.
His teammates picked him up in the second quarter as he had to rest (2 points in 8:34 of play), as they kept it close in trailing 57-50.
And when the Bucks stretched their lead to 10 early in the second half, Butler scored five straight points to keep the Heat within shouting distance. But as his minutes piled up – and the Bucks’ defensive intensity on him didn’t relent – the lack of second and third scoring options did not appear to take a toll.
Butler scored 11 of the Heat’s 15 points in the quarter, enough to keep them connected in trailing by 11. He had 35 points in just under 33 minutes through three quarters.
“I think it’s always credit to the player first," Budenholzer said. "Butler, he hit a lot of shots. We’ll look at the film, see what we could do better. But credit to him, he was very good.”
He returned for final 8:11 of the game, with his team down 10.
Less than five minutes later, he had given the Heat their first lead of the game with a bucket with 3:17 to go at 102-101 to cap a 13-0 Heat run. Butler then assisted on a Caleb Martin three and then scored 10 straight points to put the dagger in the Bucks.
“He obviously played great," Lopez said. "He’s been great all series long. He’s been aggressive. He’s just been knocking down shots, shooting the three extremely well. There hasn’t been a thing that the hasn’t been doing. It’s a tough draw but we just gotta keep getting better, keep making life tough for him, one game at a time.”
As the Heat closed it out, he grinned and waved for the Heat crowd to ramp up the volume as the Bucks desperately missed shots in the final seconds.
Butler’s 56 points broke LeBron James’ franchise playoff record. Butler was 19 for 28 from the floor and 15 for 18 from the free throw line.
“I think he was playing his game. He hit big shots, got to the line, especially toward the end. He made some good plays. Jimmy just being Jimmy.”
“I just feel like he was playing, you know? Sometimes you catch fire, you get into a rhythm and not much can be done. He played a really good game.”
Five numbers
3:49 Minutes Butler rested at the start of the fourth quarter, and the Heat cut a 89-78 deficit to 98-89 without him to keep the game close.
13 Teams that have come back from a 3-1 series deficit to win the series. Denver was the last team to do it, in the 2020 Western Conference semifinals. The 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors also did it.
13-0 Run by the Heat in the fourth quarter to flip a 101-89 deficit to a 102-101 lead.
14-24 Turnovers by the Bucks and points by the Heat. The Bucks had just six turnovers in the first half, but couldn’t hang on to the ball in crunch time.
22 Fist quarter points for Butler, tying a Heat record for most points in any playoff quarter – a record set by none other than fellow Marquette University alumnus Dwyane Wade.
A Twitter List by journalsentinel
Play of the game was Kyle Lowry's steal of Jrue Holiday
With 4:18 to go in the game and the Heat closing in on the Bucks, Lowry ripped the ball from the Bucks' point guard and got the ball going the other way to Butler. Butler drew Middleton's fifth foul on the drive, and his two free throws cut the Bucks lead to 101-98. It was a key stop in a pivotal 13-0 Heat run that turned the game.
Video of the game is Giannis' reverse slam
If there was any question about Antetokounmpo's ability to move around early in the game against the Heat, he answered it with an impressive reverse one-handed dunk after sliding around multiple Heat defenders early in the first quarter. It helped set a tone for the Bucks in a must-win game.
Giannis going to work early in Q1!
MIL/MIA Game 4 | TNT pic.twitter.com/5a2a380g6R— NBA (@NBA) April 24, 2023
What is the Bucks vs. Heat playoff schedule?
After tonight's game, the series returns to Milwaukee for Game 5. Tipoff for that game is set for 8:30 p.m. at Fiserv Forum.
Game 6, if necessary, is Friday at Kaseya Center. Game 7 would be in Milwaukee, if necessary.
More: Milwaukee Bucks 2023 NBA playoff schedule for first-round series vs. Miami Heat
More: Bucks vs Heat Game 4 on TV, livestream, radio
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Jimmy Butler scores 56 as Heat stun Giannis, Bucks, 119-114, in Game 4
