Aussie pair in playoff losses
JAMES Harden and Giannis Antetokounmpo have shown why they are the NBA’s leading MVP candidates with dominant playoff performances, but it was bad news for Australians Joe Ingles and Thon Maker.
Harden had a triple-double as the Houston Rockets crushed Ingles’ Utah Jazz 118-98 yesterday to take a 2-0 lead in their series. The Jazz had no answer for him as he sank six three-pointers on his way to 32 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists.
“That’s two games in a row we held them under 100 points,” Harden said. “That (defence) is going to be the key to the series.”
The only time he slowed was in the first quarter when an Ingles elbow clipped him in the throat and the Rockets had to call a time-out. Ingles managed seven points, missing five of his eight field goal attempts, including five of six threepointers.
The Rockets need two more wins to eliminate the Jazz in the best-of-seven series, with the next two games in Utah.
In Milwaukee, Maker’s Detroit Pistons suffered a similar fate as Antetokounmpo, proved unplayable. He had 26 points and 12 rebounds as he spearheaded the Milwaukee Bucks to a 120-99 thumping of the Pistons.
The Bucks also hold a 2-0 lead.
Antetokounmpo terrorised former protege Maker with dunks and big defensive plays.
Maker was drafted by the Bucks in 2016 but the Sudanese-born, Australianraised forward-centre asked for a trade mid-season and he was shipped to the Pistons in February.
He has had a poor shooting run in the two playoff losses, missing eight of 10 field goals in game one and seven of nine in game two. He has missed all nine three-point attempts.
In the second quarter Maker did block his former mentor, but on the next play Antetokounmpo got his revenge with a big dunk over the Australian.
“Thon is long and can block shots and that is one of the things he does great, but I tried to get him a little bit deeper in the paint and I was able to get in a position to dunk on him,” Antetokounmpo said.
The Boston Celtics, meanwhile, rallied to defeat the Indiana Pacers and take a 2-0 lead in their series, although their Australian big man Aron Baynes’ bad run of injuries may have continued.
The Celtics won 99-91 in Boston.
The Pacers led by 12 points late in the third quarter but Kyrie Irving, who top-scored with 37 points, and Jayson Tatum, with 26 points, led Boston’s comeback with major plays in the final quarter.
Baynes was impressive in the opening two minutes with a dunk, block and a threepointer, but his hot form cooled in the second period when he fought for a rebound and appeared to twist an ankle.
He did not play in the fourth quarter.
The Queenslander has struggled with injuries, missing 31 regular season games.