Entering Sunday’s Game 3 of the NBA Finals, the Bucks and head coach Mike Budenholzer didn’t have many answers for a Phoenix Suns team that’d taken an early 2-0 series lead.
Giannis Antetokounmpo’s second 40-plus point performance in back-to-back games changed that narrative as he led the Bucks to come within 2-1 of these NBA Finals. He became the third player in NBA Finals history with 40 points and 10 rebounds in back-to-back games, according to ESPN.
Giannis ended Game 3 with 41 points, 13 rebounds, and six assists as he shot 13-for-17 from the free-throw line.
After trailing by six points in the second quarter, the Bucks would outscore the Suns 30-9 over the last nine minutes of the quarter taking a 60-45 lead into halftime. The crowd would begin to chant “Bucks in 6!” as Milwaukee started to pull away towards the end of the first half.
Phoenix would bring Milwaukee’s 15-point lead to just four points midway through the third quarter, but the Bucks would close the quarter on a 16-0 run. The first NBA Finals game held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 47 years quickly turned into a blowout from that point on.
The Bucks would lead by as much as 24 points in the fourth quarter and would go on to win 120-100 in Game 3. Jrue Holiday had 21 points and nine assists in the win, Khris Middleton added 18 points and seven rebounds.
Through the first 15 minutes of the game, the Suns looked poised against the Bucks and a deafening Milwaukee crowd. With Deandre Ayton’s early foul trouble and Devin Booker’s inability to score, the Suns fell apart.
At halftime, Booker had just seven points on 2-for-11 shooting, including 1-for-6 from three-point range. He played just 29 minutes, finishing with just 10 points, six rebounds, and two assists.
Ayton’s four early fouls in 21 minutes of play forced the Suns into a small-ball lineup allowing Giannis to gash their defense every time down the floor. Despite the bad night, Ayton looked dominant in the first quarter with 12 points on 85 (6-7 Fg) percent shooting through that stretch.
He was the first center to have a 12-plus point quarter in the NBA Finals since Shaq in 2004, according to Basketball Reference.
Chris Paul led the Suns with just 19 points, Ayton and Jae Crowder each provided 18 points in the loss.
The Bucks will play the Suns in Game 4 on Wednesday in hope of tying this NBA Finals series 2-2.
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