The two best words in sports are game seven. Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo didn’t shy away in Game 7 of their Eastern Conference semifinals series despite being extremely fatigued throughout the game.
With just 1.6 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Kevin Durant hit what appeared to be the potential game-winning three-pointer as Barclay’s Center erupted. The ruling of the shot was ultimately changed to a two-pointer as Durant’s foot was on the line. That shot gave him 48 points, the most points scored in a Game 7 in NBA history, according to StatMuse.
“My big a– foot just stepped on the line,” Durant said in his postgame interview. “I just saw how close I was to ending their season with that shot.
Despite the Bucks missing the final shot in regulation, Durant’s incredible performance fell short.
Just four points were scored through the first four minutes of the overtime period as the teams entered the final minute tied at 111-111. Khris Middleton went on to hit the presumable game-winner on a 13-foot fadeaway over the outstretched arm of Bruce Brown. Durant missed the final two shots for Brooklyn with the last one being an airball that traveled out of bounds with just 0.3 seconds left. The Bucks won 115-111 and will advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.
After a rough first three quarters, Middleton was enormous down the stretch for Milwaukee. He scored 13 points on 5-for-10 shooting in the fourth quarter and the overtime period, the most on the team. He also scored or assisted on 18 of the final 33 points for the Bucks and held Durant to 1-for-4 shooting as the primary defender in those periods, according to ESPN. He finished with 23 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists for the Bucks.
The former MVP, Giannis, had 40 points, 13 rebounds, and five assists in what may have been the biggest game of his career. He’s the fifth player in NBA history with 40-plus points and 10-plus rebounds in a Game 7, according to ESPN.
Both coaches stuck to their guns in this matchup. Each team’s rotations centered around just seven players as five of the ten starters played 50-plus minutes. Brooklyn’s bench had zero points in the game, the first time in NBA history where a team’s reserves went scoreless in a Game 7, according to ESPN.
The Nets’ championship dreams fell just short due after putting together one of the most talented teams in NBA history. The injury to the ankle of Kyrie Irving and the lingering hamstring injury of James Harden changed the trajectory of this series.
“We’re missing Kyrie and James is on one leg,” said Nets coach Steve Nash. “You have to understand it’s not the same.”
Harden said after the game that he’s been playing through a Grade 2 hamstring strain, even though the team had been calling it hamstring tightness, according to Malika Andrews. Harden ended with a near triple-double totaling 22 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists in Game 7.
After being considered the favorites to win it all the Nets are officially eliminated from the NBA playoffs. The Bucks will play the winner of the Hawks and 76ers series in the Eastern Conference Finals beginning on Wednesday.
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