Milwaukee didn’t have their superstar. They still tied an NBA record.
Without Giannis Antetokounmpo, who missed Game 2 against the Miami Heat with a bruised lower back, the Bucks had to focus on scoring from the outside. And score they did, tying an NBA playoff record by making 25 shots from beyond the arc.
Pat Connaughton led the three-point barrage with six threes in ten attempts. The Bucks hit nine triples in the second quarter, when they outscored the Heat 46-27. Then they hit nine more in the third, taking a 33-point lead after 36 minutes.
The Bucks tied the record held by the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers, who made 25 of their 45 attempted three-pointers in the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Atlanta Hawks. J.R. Smith led the way in that one, splashing seven triples, while LeBron James and Kyrie Irving each had four. The 2017 Cavaliers also have the next-highest total with 24 threes in Game 4 of their 2017 Finals, when they dealt the 2017 Warriors their lone playoff loss.
It’s likely the highest combined total for two teams in a playoff game, as the Heat made 16 threes of their own. Eight of those came in garbage time in the fourth quarter, with the game well out of reach.
Milwaukee also owns the single-season record for three-pointers in a game, set in December of 2020, also against the Heat. 12 different Bucks made a three-pointer in the game — everyone who played, except Antetokounmpo.
Miami may have been worried about stopping Antetokounmpo inside. Now they need to stop everyone else from outside.
