Milwaukee Bucks become first team to clinch playoff spot with win over Phoenix Suns

PHOENIX – The Milwaukee Bucks continued their march to the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference as they won for the fifth time in six games with a 116-104 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night at the Footprint Center.

The Bucks are the first team in the NBA to reach 50 wins this season and clinch a spot in the postseason. They remain three games ahead of the Boston Celtics in the loss column with a 50-19 record. The Suns dropped to 37-32.

Bucks first to clinch playoff berth

The Bucks have kept their eyes on the long-term goal all season, which has been playoff basketball. All the steps along the way, from roster changes to injury management to play style adjustments have been done with that mind. After ascending to the top spot in the Eastern Conference they’ve been asked about seeding and home court advantage, questions they’ve acknowledged but largely pushed aside with an eye on the bigger picture.

But on Tuesday, a piece of the bigger picture fell firmly into place as the Bucks became the first team in the NBA to formally punch their ticket to the 2022-23 postseason.

Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks back into the playoffs with a strong performance Tuesday night.

There are still 13 games left in the regular season, and the focus does indeed turn a bit more squarely toward solidifying home court advantage. It is the next regular season step in the process of getting to the playoffs on a roll.

Giannis Antetokounmpo posts back-to-back dominant games

Antetokounmpo returned to the court for the first time since March 5 on Monday night in Sacramento and scored 46 points in 34 minutes, and he backed that up with a 36-point night against the Suns on Tuesday. It was the fifth set of back-to-back games he’s played, and the Bucks are 10-0 in those games. (He has missed one or both games of four others, and the Bucks are 3-1 in the second game of those sets.)

Phoenix struggled to slow down Antetokounmpo on the defensive side, especially when he drew two first-quarter fouls on Suns center Deandre Ayton. That forced the Suns to put smaller players on the 7-footer, and they did about as well as expected.

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/milwaukee-bucks-become-first-team-050242391.html?src=rss

Author : USA TODAY Sports

Publish date : 2023-03-15 05:02:42

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