We were treated to a cardiac, overtime finish in their last encounter, where the Heat won, 131-126. Tomorrow has the makings of another barnburner.
HOME TEAM: Miami Heat (38-22, 25-4 at home)
After going on a 5-9 stretch that saw them squander big leads in the fourth quarter, the Heat have won back-to-back. They beat the Dallas Mavericks on Luka Doncic’s 21st birthday, 126-118, and then survived the Brooklyn Nets’ scare, 116-113.
In true Heat fashion, seven players scored in double digits in that road win over the Bucks back in late October. Goran Dragic came off the bench to notch 25 points and eight assists, while All-Star Bam Adebayo had an all-around statline of 19 points, 13 rebounds, and eight dimes.
The other All-Star, Jimmy Butler (20.8 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 6.2 APG, 1.7 SPG), didn’t play in that previous meeting, which should add to Miami’s confidence. The eight-year veteran should be geared up for tomorrow’s marquee match-up.
ROAD TEAM: Milwaukee Bucks (52-8, 25-5 on the road)
The Bucks will be on the second night of a back-to-back, fresh-off a 93-85 victory over the Charlotte Hornets. It was their sixth straight win and ninth in their last 10 games on the road.
Giannis Antetokounmpo was the only notable player in the rather boring contest. He burned the defense for 41 points, 20 rebounds, and six assists on 17-for-28 shooting.
The Greek Freak probably saw it as a prelude for tomorrow’s revenge game on the Heat. The Bucks were frustrated by the Heat in that first match-up, whose balanced scoring outdueled their own balanced scoring (seven Bucks also reached double figures). Giannis got hounded well in that game too and committed eight turnovers.
Khris Middleton has missed the last two games due to a neck injury and is still questionable to return. That would leave Eric Bledsoe (15.6 PPG, 5.5 APG) and Brook Lopez (10.7 PPG, 2.5 BPG) to be the two main scoring support.
PREDICTION:
The Heat are one of the best home teams this season, but the Bucks have the number one-ranked offense, defensive rating, and record in the league for a reason. Also, they’re pretty motivated to even up the series. I expect the Bucks to win, 119-113.
