Veterans put their experience to test
Veterans Matthew Dellavedova and Jason Terry were on the floor for the entire fourth quarter as the Milwaukee Bucks tried to force a Game 7 in their hotly contested first-round series with Toronto.
And the Bucks nearly did it, rallying from a 25point third-quarter deficit before losing a 92-89 heartbreaker in Game 6 on Thursday before a sold-out BMO Harris Bradley Center.
“We talked about it before the game, Delly and Jet have been in this position before and they’re not scared,” Bucks coach Jason Kidd said. “I thought they were everywhere causing havoc. I thought they were great leaders, not just in tonight’s game but throughout the whole season.
“They understand how to fight to the end. That’s who Delly is and that’s who Jet is. Jet missed some threes early but for our younger guys to understand not to be scared.”
Terry’s three-pointer with 3:16 left gave the Bucks an 80-78 lead, and he hit another triple with 19.4 seconds to go to bring Milwaukee within 89-87, ending a 9-0 Raptors run.
Terry finished with eight points and four rebounds in 18 minutes, and Dellavedova had 12 points, four assists and four rebounds in 34 minutes.
“I think both of them did a great job, not just in this game but all year long,” Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo said. “I’ve never seen guys talk more Jet than Delly.
“I think they helped everybody this year; they helped Malcolm (Brogdon), they helped Thon (Maker), Tony (Snell), me, Khris (Middleton).”
Before the game, Kidd said he remembered playing for Phoenix against Seattle in his third pro season. The seventh-seeded Suns had a 2-1 lead in the bestof-five series but lost the last two games.
“If you’re lucky enough to play this game for 5 to 10 years, you can use these experiences,” Kidd said of an elimination game. “That’s what we all have done when we’re in this situation.
“For me, when I was in Phoenix playing Game 5 against Seattle, I had no idea what that meant but found out very quickly what that meant. We got blown out, but it was an experience I could use going forward.
“I was put in that situation a couple of times in my career and I was able to share that with my teammates, understanding the moment. This is about stars showing up.”
The Bucks had their own Game 6 embarrassment two years ago after rallying from a 3-0 deficit against the Chicago Bulls, winning at home and taking Game 5 at the United Center.
But the Bucks were pounded, 120-66, in Game 6 by the more experienced Bulls.
“I hope they still remember that,” Kidd said. “We have some new guys on our team, but we have a couple of guys left from that team and that’s something we can learn from.”
This time the Bucks responded even though they could not finish the comeback.
Fastball hitters: Kidd talked after Game 5 about how the Raptors were throwing fastballs around the court and beating the Bucks defense.
“I think when you’re playing defense the more that you see height on the pass, it gives an opportunity for guys to make the rotations. If you’re coming and closing out the fastballs you’re dead.
“As much as hitters like the fastball, so do guys who want to catch threes just because it gives them more time to decide, do they shoot it or do they drive it.”