Bucks in Six

Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis each scored 29 points and the short-handed Milwaukee Bucks kept their season alive by routing the Indiana Pacers 115-92 in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series on Tuesday night.

Portis had the highest point total of his playoff career and added 10 rebounds to make amends two nights after he got ejected from a Game 4 loss. Middleton had his third straight game with at least 25 points, and he also contributed 12 rebounds and five assists.

The Pacers still lead the best-of-seven series 3-2 heading into Game 6 on Thursday in Indianapolis.

Myles Turner scored 29 points, Tyrese Haliburton added 24 and the Indiana Pacers made a franchise playoff record 22 3-pointers as they pulled away late for a 126-113 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday night.

The win gave the Pacers a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series. Indiana has won three straight since losing the opener and can reach the Eastern Conference semifinals for the first time since 2014 — with a win Tuesday at Milwaukee.

Haliburton posted a career playoff scoring high for the second straight game while Turner matched a playoff career high that he set in Friday night's overtime win. Turner also had nine rebounds and four assists against a Bucks squad that was missing two injured All-Stars, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard.

Brook Lopez led the Bucks with 27 points and nine rebounds, and Khris Middleton added 25 points, 10 rebounds and five assists.

All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton completed a three-point play with 1.6 seconds left, capping his first postseason triple-double in his first home playoff game to give the Indiana Pacers a 121-118 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. Indiana leads the best-of-seven series 2-1, with Game 4 on Sunday in Indianapolis.

Khris Middleton paced the Bucks finishing with a playoff-career high 42 points and had 10 rebounds and five assists after missing practice Thursday because of a sprained right ankle. He forced overtime by making a 3-pointer with 1.4 seconds to go in regulation, banked in a 3 to tie the score with 6.7 seconds left in overtime and then missed a 3 at the buzzer that could have forced a second overtime.

Damian Lillard added 28 points and eight assists, most coming after he hurt his left knee in the first quarter and then aggravating an Achilles tendon injury late in the fourth quarter.

Pascal Siakam scored 37 points and the Indiana Pacers overcame another fantastic first-half performance from Damian Lillard to beat the Milwaukee Bucks 125-108 on Tuesday night and tie their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series at a game apiece.

Two nights after scoring all 35 of his points in the first half of the Bucks’ 109-94 Game 1 victory, Lillard had 26 by halftime Tuesday and finished with 34.

It wasn’t enough. Lillard didn’t get enough help with the Bucks once again missing two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo due to a strained left calf.

Damian Lillard scored all 35 of his points before halftime and the Milwaukee Bucks withstood the absence of Giannis Antetokounmpo to defeat the Indiana Pacers 109-94 on Sunday in their Eastern Conference playoff opener.

The Bucks needed Lillard to step up without Antetokounmpo, whose return date is uncertain as he deals with a strained left calf that also caused him to miss Milwaukee’s final three regular-season games.

With Antetokounmpo watching from the bench, Lillard came through by setting a Bucks record for points in either half of a playoff game.

Paolo Banchero scored 26 points, Franz Wagner added 25 and Jonathan Isaac headed a shutdown defensive effort in his second start of the season for the Orlando Magic, who secured the No. 5 spot in the Eastern Conference on Sunday with a 113-88 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.

Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis scored 17 points each for Milwaukee. Damian Lillard added 16 points on 2-of-14 shooting for the Bucks, who finished third in the East at 49-33. They will play Indiana in the first round.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 23 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the injury-depleted Milwaukee Bucks 125-107 on Friday night to boost their hopes of taking the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference playoffs.

The Bucks played Friday without All-Stars Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard. They already had announced Wednesday that Antetokounmpo would miss the rest of the regular season with a strained left calf. Lillard was out with a sore left adductor. Milwaukee fell to 4-4 in games without Antetokounmpo this season.

The Bucks could have clinched the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs with a win. They still can clinch the No. 2 seed with a win at Orlando on Sunday or a New York Knicks home loss to the Chicago Bulls on Sunday. Bucks coach Doc Rivers said before the game that he was more concerned with health than the standings.

Bobby Portis had 30 points, nine rebounds and a career-high five steals to help the Milwaukee Bucks withstand Giannis Antetokounmpo's absence and beat the Orlando Magic 117-99 on Wednesday night.

The Bucks played a night after Antetokounmpo left a 104-91 victory over the Boston Celtics because of a strained left calf. The Bucks announced Wednesday that the two-time MVP would miss the final three games of the regular season, though his availability for the start of the playoffs remains uncertain.

Giannis Antetokounmpo left late in the third quarter with a calf injury, but the Milwaukee Bucks hung on to beat the Boston Celtics 104-91 on Tuesday night in a game that featured an NBA record-low total of two free-throw attempts.

Milwaukee snapped a four-game skid as Patrick Beverley had 20 points and 10 rebounds after the Bucks shook up their lineup by having the veteran guard start ahead of Malik Beasley, who came off the bench for the first time all season.

Antetokounmpo was heading up the court late in the third quarter after a Celtics basket when he grabbed his left calf and took a seat. The two-time MVP was helped off the floor, and cameras showed him heading to the locker room under his own power.