NBA Playoffs: Milwaukee Bucks Take Lead Over Atlanta Hawks With Game 3 Victory

The Milwaukee Bucks snagged a Game 3 victory over the Atlanta Hawks, getting a 2-1 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals.
NBA Playoffs: Milwaukee Bucks Take Lead Over Atlanta Hawks With Game 3 Victory
NBA Playoffs: Milwaukee Bucks Take Lead Over Atlanta Hawks With Game 3 Victory /

The Atlanta Hawks kicked off the Eastern Conference Finals with a bang earlier last week as they stole Game 1 on the road against the Milwaukee Bucks. Coming off of a Game 7 victory against the top-seeded Philadelphia 76ers on the road, the Hawks seemed like they couldn't be stopped.

However, the hot streak they had going finally cooled down. In Game 2, the Bucks simply destroyed the Hawks at home. Leading by as much as 40 in the second outing, the Bucks didn't allow the Hawks to have any breathing room as they evened the series up at one.

On Sunday night, the Hawks hosted the Bucks for the first time in the series, and they put up a much better fight this time around. Through the first quarter, Atlanta found a way to get ahead and get some redemption from that last outing. Hawks star Trae Young led the charge as he accounted for 14 of Atlanta's 32 first-quarter points.

Meanwhile, the Bucks trailed by five points as they were outscored 32-27 through the first 12 minutes of action. Once again, the second quarter is when the tables turned. The other night, the Bucks managed to gain their significant lead over Atlanta in the second quarter and didn't look back. 

While Game 3 didn't resemble the onslaught, Milwaukee's second quarter was productive enough to have them tie the game up at 56 before heading into halftime.

Once again, the game remained tight in the third quarter. As Atlanta's Trae Young collected another 15 points, he helped lead the charge for the Hawks as they outscored the Bucks 29-27 to garner a two-point lead heading into the final quarter.

Unfortunately, at a point, the Hawks lost Trae Young for a bit as he was dealing with an ankle issue, which forced him back to the locker room. At that point, Milwaukee took advantage as they rode the hot hand that was Khris Middleton.

Playing the entire fourth quarter, Middleton led the charge for Milwaukee in crunch time as he shot 8-13, collecting 20 points. His monster fourth quarter helped the Bucks outscore the Hawks 30-17, allowing the Bucks to pick up another comfortable victory by winning 113-102. Now, the Bucks take a 2-1 lead over the Hawks before the two teams meet once again in Atlanta on Tuesday night.


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Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO

Title: Credentialed writer/reporter covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation Email: JustinGrasso32@Gmail.com Location: Philadelphia, PA Expertise: Reporting, insight, and analysis on the Sixers and the NBA  Justin Grasso is a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation.  Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writer’s Association.  Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoNBA