Game Rewind: Pacers 85, Bucks 99

Despite leading by 11 points in the first half, the Pacers fell to the Bucks 99-85 on Friday night at the BMO Harris Bradley Center in Milwaukee.

The Bucks — who use a trapping defense — forced Indiana into 20 turnovers on the evening, resulting in a game-deciding 22 points.

It didn't help matters that the Pacers (33-32) were as cold as a Wisconsin winter from downtown, connecting on just 2-of-18 3-point shots on the night.

"They played a zone and they trapped," said Paul George of the Bucks. "They played a scrappy game. It plays into their strengths, being long and athletic. It comes down to guys needing to tighten it up and make plays offensively."

Milwaukee (31-33), which collected its fifth straight win, was led by the all-around play of All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo who finished with 21 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and five steals. Khris Middleton, who is still getting in the swing of things following an injury, collected 21 points for the Bucks as well.

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For the Pacers, Paul George started off the game hot, finishing the first half with an impressive stat line of 11 points, seven rebounds, and five assists. But like his teammates, George struggled to create offense in the second half, finishing the night 5-of-14 from the field and going the entire third quarter without getting a bucket.

Early on, it appeared the Pacers had the Bucks' aggressive defense figured out, racking up 10 assists in the first quarter alone to jump out to an 11-point advantage.

But by halftime, the Bucks had knocked the advantage down to just five. Out of the locker room, Milwaukee continued to strike, outscoring the Pacers 29-18 in the third quarter to bring a 74-68 lead into the fourth quarter.

There were moments in which Indiana had windows to climb back in, but the team's icy performance from downtown doomed the Pacers, who went the entirety of the second half without connecting on a 3-point shot.

In the fourth, the Pacers were able to cut the deficit to just three points following a cutting Monta Ellis layup to make it 79-76 with 8:22 left in the game. But from that point, the Milwaukee's offense clicked again, reeling off a 9-3 run to create another comfortable wedge as crunch time approached.

"(We) stopped moving, started turning the ball over," Pacers head coach Nate McMillan explained. "I thought we stopped moving. As you mentioned, 10 assists in the first quarter, only three in the second quarter, and then two for the second half, so you're not moving, you're not moving the ball, and you're not knocking down shots."

Down the stretch, the Pacers were never able to threaten Milwaukee's lead as the Bucks picked up their third win of the season against the Blue & Gold, giving the season series win to Milwaukee.

"We knew that coming in that it came down to a tiebreaker," said George of the matchup. "We wanted that to be in our favor. We're down 0-3 to this team (this season) so now we need to do even more work because it is going to come down to the wire."

While the Pacers made just 2-of-18 3-point shots, the Bucks connected on 7-of-17 from downtown.

After racking up 10 assists in the first quarter, the Pacers had just five the rest of the way.

Thaddeus Young posted the only positive plus-minus on the Pacers with +2.

Milwaukee connected on 26-of-30 free throw attempts on the night.

"I thought they started to execute. They started to execute their sets and run their plays and really try to pound it inside. With Antetokounmpo and (Greg) Monroe posting up, Monroe on the block and Antetokounmpo at the elbow. We had some breakdown in our defensive coverage a couple times. He walked to the basket, and you can't have those breakdowns." -Nate McMillan

"They do a good job of loading up, but it's the way that we're playing. I think we're playing a way that they like to play. They isolate the ball and load up. They're built for that. When we had the ball in the first half and we were getting out and running, I think we had a pretty good quarter." -Jeff Teague

"(It was) all game. I (would) catch the ball and there would be two (guys) on me. I came out and had a quick five assists. Every time I caught it, whether it was in a pick-and-roll, or in a post-up, they immediately came every time. It worked, it was hard to get myself into a rhythm because every time I caught it I had to move." -Paul George on facing double teams

Indiana's 15 team assists were its lowest total since a December 14 loss the Miami Heat in which the Pacers finished with 14 assists. The Pacers had 10 assists in the first quarter on Friday, but just five over the final three quarters.

The Pacers return to Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Sunday, March 12 to host the Miami Heat at 6:00 PM ET. Limited seats remain for Sunday's "Decade Game," where all fans will receive a bobblehead of former Pacers All-Star forward Danny Granger. Find Tickets »