The Eastern Conference Finals kicked off Wednesday night with the Atlanta Hawks taking on the Milwaukee Bucks. Could the Hawks keep their success rolling from their upset win over the Philadelphia 76ers?
(#3) Milwaukee Bucks 113, (#5) Atlanta Hawks 116
ATL leads 1-0
Trae Young has had an outstanding playoffs but Wednesday night, the up-and-coming suprstar may have been his best game to date.
Young, facing a long and lean Bucks squad led by two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, went for 48 points, 11 assists and six rebounds in the Hawks’ nail-biter victory. He was so dominant, in fact, that he scored or assisted on 80 of the 108 points scored by Atlanta when he was on the floor.
Hawks forward John Collins continued to play strongly, hustling his way to 23 points and 15 rebounds, while the steady Clint Capela finished with 12 points and 19 rebounds.
Despite the loss, Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday both played stellar games.
The Greek Freak had a team-high 34 points with Holiday not far behind, chipping in 33 points of his own. It was another night to forget for Khris Middelton, however.
Middleton ended the night on 15 points, shooting a woeful 6-for-23 from the field and 0-for-9 from three.
However, despite a substandard game from Middleton, Milwaukee held a 111-110 lead with less than two minutes to go and were in the game all the way until the final horn sounded.
The Bucks will have the chance to even the series on Friday night in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals, looking to avoid another slow start in a series against a formidable team.
