So much for the marathon, the Milwaukee Bucks are now primed for the sprint. The Bucks defeated the Chicago Bulls 105-92 Wednesday night at Fiserv Forum to get to 58-22 on the season, clinching the Eastern Conference championship, the NBA’s best regular season and most importantly, home court advantage throughout the playoffs.
A defensive lockdown in the 4th quarter secured the win as Milwaukee outscored the visitors 26-16 in the final period. They played without Giannis Antetokounmpo who rested his ailing knee, Pat Connaughton and Grayson Allen are also recovering from injury. Khris Middleton played only 8 minutes before landing hard on his leg and he limped off with knee soreness but it’s not expected to be serious. The Bucks had plenty in reserve however as Bobby Portis stepped up with a game high 27 points to go along with 13 rebounds. Brook Lopez put up 26 and Jrue Holiday had 20 points with 15 assists.
Milwaukee has a three game lead on Boston with only two games to play so they won’t be caught. They finish the season at home against Memphis on Friday night and at Toronto on Easter Sunday. Head Coach Mike Budenholzer says it will give his team to rest and heal up as they watch the NBA playoffs begin with play in games next week to learn their opening round opponent.
