Bucks force Game 6 by shutting down Bulls
Maybe a proper nickname for the Milwaukee Bucks would be the "Smothers Brothers."
Most fans were expecting the home team to advance in Monday's Game 5 at the United Center, but the Bucks defense covered the Bulls like a deerskin blanket.
Milwaukee loves to use its long-armed defenders to trap all over the court. In this game, the Bulls couldn't move the ball fast enough beat the double teams. There was always an extra arm ready to contest the shot.
And this first round series will continue after Milwaukee led the entire second half and won 94-88. With the Bulls' lead in the series cut to 3-2, Game 6 will be Thursday at 6 p.m. at the Bradley Center.
"You can look at it a bunch of different ways," Mike Dunleavy said. "Shoot, they could be up 3-2 right now. They had two shots to win it in Game 3 up there. The reality is we're 3-2 in our favor and we've just got to get one more game.
"I think we're still a confident group. We'll go up there feeling good about ourselves and go into Thursday expecting to win."
The Bulls shot 34.8 percent from the field in Game 5 and went just 4-for-21 from 3-point range. Pau Gasol led the Bulls with 25 points and Jimmy Butler added 20. But Butler hit just 5 of 21 shots and Derrick Rose (13 points) made 5 of 20.
The Bulls went to the foul line 29 times. But late in the game, trying to draw a foul was simply a bad plan. Pleas to the referees were met with blank stares. This was playoff basketball all the way.
"That's fine with me. I'm not intimidated," Butler said. "I didn't get foul calls. I'm not going to complain. I'm still going to put the ball in the basket. I missed open shots. That's what the gym's for. I put in the work."
Turnovers weren't even much of a problem this time. The Bulls finished with 13 on Monday, compared to 28 in Game 4.
The Bucks shot 42.4 percent from the field and were led by guards Michael Carter-Williams with 22 points and Khris Middleton with 21.
Milwaukee's defense stood out, but Butler put the focus on the Bulls' defensive deficiencies.
"I'm supposed to be the prime-time defensive guy and I haven't been guarding a soul," Butler said. "I've been worried about offense too much and I need to change that quickly or it's going to be my fault.
"Yeah, myself, Derrick, we missed shots tonight. So what? That happens. We can't guard the way that we guard and expect to win. I think it starts with myself and him to be the leaders on the defensive end. We set the tone from the very beginning, it's going to be that tone for the rest of the game."
The Bulls got off to an awful start, missing their first 8 shots and falling behind 9-0. Once Joakim Noah broke the ice by hitting a layup at the 7:09 mark of the opening quarter, the Bulls started rolling. They built a 21-4 run, but the momentum was short-lived. By halftime, the Bucks had a 52-49 lead.
"They jumped on us right away," Rose said. "We just couldn't turn the things we wanted. We just need to move the ball and make quicker decisions. Our shots looked good, but just weren't falling."
Several times in the fourth quarter, the Bulls made a run, got the crowd involved, then ran square into a pair of antlers. After closing within 80-77, Noah had two point-blank shots roll off the rim somehow and Milwaukee's lead quickly returned to 9 points.
A Gasol jumper made it 86-83 with 4:45 left. But Carter-Williams hit a driving bank shot and after the Bulls missed their next 3 shots, John Henson's follow slam put the lead at 90-83 with 3:15 remaining. The last straw was Rose getting blocked in the lane with the Bulls down 92-88 and 38 seconds left.
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3 keys to the game
1. No good looks: The Bulls shot just 34.4 percent against Milwaukee's long-armed defense and never got comfortable in Game 5.
2. Nothing from outside: There wasn't much 3-point shooting to combat the Bucks' double-teams. The Bulls hit just 4 of 22 from behind the arc.
3. Momentum stuck: The Bulls fell behind 9-0 at the start, the never led in the second half. Game 6 is Thursday at the Bradley Center.
- Mike McGraw