Suns fight to stay alive! Phoenix overcomes 13-point first-half deficit to claw back into Game 6 as the Milwaukee Bucks aim to clinch their first title in half a century
The Phoenix Suns aren't ready to end their season.
Facing elimination against the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, the visiting Suns overcame a 13-point first-deficit to go into halftime with a five-point lead despite a 17-point effort from two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The game got off to an ugly start for both teams as they combined for seven turnovers over the first five minutes while the Suns missed six of their first seven shots.
Perhaps the only player who wasn't cold in the first quarter was Milwaukee's Khris Middleton, who hit three of his first five shots for seven points while adding three first-quarter rebounds.
Best of all for Milwaukee, Antetokounmpo made 10 of his first 11 free throw attempts, reversing his recent struggles at the line. Prior to Tuesday, the Athens native known as the 'Greek Freak' had made just 55.8 percent of his foul shots in the playoffs after hitting 68.5 percent during the regular season.
The Bucks ended the first quarter with a 29-16 lead.
Phoenix did get going in the second quarter, cutting a 13-point lead down to take a two-point lead in the frame. At one point the Suns scored nine straight points.
Giannis Antetokounmpo shots on Phoenix's Deandre Ayton in the first quarter on Tuesday
The Suns are focused on patching up a defense that allowed a pair of 40-point games to Giannis Antetokounmpo , another to Khris Middleton and a memorable Game 5 effort from Jrue Holiday. While the Bucks have shared the leading role to win three straight in the series, the Suns continue to lean heavily on Devin Booker . He has 82 of the team's 222 points in the past two games -- a pair of 40-point efforts, both in losses. Williams allowed that Booker wants to 'win the moment' but the Suns need more of the team attack in Game 6
Bucks center Brook Lopez tips the ball away from the Suns' Deandre Ayton in the first quarter
Chris Paul defends Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo. Paul and Bucks guard Jrue Holiday line up during a first-quarter free throw attempt in Milwaukee
Comedian Dave Chappelle attends Game 6 of the NBA Finals between the Bucks and Suns
A mounted deer head is pictured alongside a sign indicating that the Bucks need one more win
FINALS RATINGS UP FROM '20 BUT TRAIL PRE-PANDEMIC NUMBERS
The NBA Finals has gained some, but not all, of its audience back after last year's trip to the pandemic bubble.
The first three games of the championship matchup between the Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks averaged just about 9 million viewers, the Nielsen company said.
That's up 41 percent from the 6.38 million who watched the first three games of last year's series between the L.A. Lakers and Miami Heat. The 2000 series was held in the odd time of late September and October and played without live audiences due to COVID-19 restrictions.
This year's series is close to normal in timing, and live audiences have returned. Compared to the pre-COVID 2019 series where Toronto beat Golden State, this year's audience is down 34 percent, Nielsen said.
Most events tend to lose viewers from year to year, with the increased choices that consumers have. The 2019 series also featured the well-known Golden State Warriors, who were competing in their fifth straight Finals.
The Finals helped ABC dominate the prime time ratings, as the network averaged 4.6 million viewers for the week. NBC had 2.9 million, CBS had 2.7 million, Univision had 1.8 million, Fox had 1.7 million, Ion Television had 1.1 million and Telemundo had 1 million.
- The Associated Press
Two hours before ticket-holding fans were cleared to enter Milwaukee's Fiserv Forum as potential eyewitnesses to the Bucks winning the NBA title for the first time in 50 years.
Even the Milwaukee Brewers' baseball game was switched an evening start to avoid a conflict with tonight's NBA contest.
'I've been waiting for this for a long, long time,' said Dan Slack, adding he was 10 when the Bucks won the 1971 NBA championship. 'I'm just worried about Chris Paul going off.'
Simmering celebration mode became more palpable closer to the stadium but underlying tension was evident in fans voicing caution based on the recent history of the Bucks in the postseason.
Bucks forward Bobby Portis, who said he took less money for a role on a winning team in free agency after stints with the Chicago Bulls and New York Knicks, was eager for the team to show its appreciation for their fans on Tuesday night. The Bucks were the best team in the Eastern Conference in the regular season at 26-10; the Los Angeles Clippers had the same home record to lead the West.
'Just having these guys here that really believe in us and trust in us,' Portis said last week. 'And having 20,000, 30,000, 40,000 fans outside just going crazy and having 17,000 inside, it's just a great time to be a Buck right now and it's a great time for the city of Milwaukee. It's real diverse out there. See a lot of people just mingling and being together. I think just us winning and impacting the city has brought the city together.'
The usual 20,000 fans permitted in the concert style, standing-room open lot adjacent to the stadium known as the Deer District multiplied to 65,000 on Tuesday.
Layered lines for souvenirs and gift shop access were not as deep or wide as the ushered assemblies for a frosty Leinenkugel's. Temperatures were in the mid-80s and humidity high as the Finals played into late July to accommodate the second consecutive COVID-impacted postseason.
For Bucks fans, it could be worth the wait. A loss Tuesday sends the best-of-seven to a deciding game in Phoenix on Thursday night.
'If we win, great. If we don't, we have one more chance,' Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo said. 'But if we win, it would be nice to celebrate with the fans inside and outside and with our families, because this is something historical that is happening in the city right now.'
Beer & Deer: Milwaukee Bucks fans adorned with antlers and beer cans prepare for Game 6
Milwaukee Bucks fans smile before the game against the Phoenix Suns during Game Six of the 2021 NBA Finals on July 20, 2021 at the Fiserv Forum Center in Milwaukee
Fans make their way into the Deer District before Game 6 of the NBA basketball finals game between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Phoenix Suns Tuesday, July 20, 2021, in Milwaukee
Fans on scooters approach Fiserv Forum ahead of Tuesday's Game 6 in Milwaukee
A group of Giannis Antetokounmpo fans wearing custom 'Greek Freak' jerseys gather before Game 6 of the NBA Finals on Tuesday night at Milwaukee's Fiserv Forum
Two hours before ticket-holding fans were cleared to enter the stadium as potential eyewitnesses to the Bucks winning the NBA title for the first time in 50 years
In a nod to Giannis Antetokounmpo's home country, a Bucks fan waves a Greek flag
Milwaukee Bucks fans make their way into the Deer District before Game 6 of the NBA Finals
Fans at Fiserv Forum are required to wear shirts, but outside, in what is known as the Deer District, attire is less restricted
Justin Holiday and Aaron Holiday of the Indiana Pacers smile before Game 6 of the NBA Finals between their brother Jrue's Milwaukee Bucks and the Phoenix Suns
According to DraftKings, Milwaukee was a 4.5-point favorite ahead of Game 6 after erasing a 2-0 series deficit by winning the past three games. past two wins were in dramatic fashion, and Phoenix had the best regular-season road record in the NBA at 24-12.
However, the past two wins were were tightly contested, and Phoenix had the best regular-season road record in the NBA at 24-12.
Bucks fans make their way into the Deer District before Game 6 of the NBA Finals
The Suns are being backed by 62 percent of the spread-line bets and 61 percent of the money at DraftKings, with action even more one-sided at 60 percent and 76 percent, respectively, at PointsBet.
Phoenix's +165 moneyline at DraftKings has drawn 65 percent of the bets and money, while the Suns' 170 moneyline at PointsBet is being backed by 57 percent of the bets and 61 percent of the money.
'You have to embrace it,' Suns forward Jae Crowder said Monday. 'You have to embrace where you are in the series and from there you have to focus and channel your emotions and energy towards the next game, and that's tomorrow night. We just know it's going to be a dogfight. ... It's win or go home. The words speak for .'
The Suns are focused on patching up a defense that allowed a pair of 40-point games to Giannis Antetokounmpo, another to Khris Middleton and a memorable Game 5 effort from Jrue Holiday.
'Our guys have always wanted it, but I think when you're in these moments like this, this is different,' Suns head coach Monty Williams said. 'This is different than the first time against the Lakers, where it was just 2-1. This is it. I think we're just going to see more, like we have throughout the playoffs.'
Complimentary T-shirts are left for each fan at Milwaukee's Fiserv Forum before Game 6
While the Bucks have shared the leading role to win three straight in the series, the Suns continue to lean heavily on Devin Booker. He has 82 of the team's 222 points in the past two games -- a pair of 40-point efforts, both in losses. Williams allowed that Booker wants to 'win the moment' but the Suns need more of the team attack to dismantle Milwaukee's defense.
The Bucks' Khris Middleton warms up on Tuesday ahead of Game 6 of the NBA Finals
The Bucks continued to dominate inside even without Antetokounmpo carrying the scoring load and ran out for 21 fast-break points in Game 5. Milwaukee head coach Mike Budenholzer credits the open-floor decision-making with unifying his group and promoting the level of unselfishness the Bucks have showcased the past two games.
Decisions are not coming as easily or naturally for Chris Paul, the Suns point guard who is averaging 3.6 turnovers per game in the series as the focus of the Bucks' full-court pressure. The idea, Holiday said, is to make Paul work on every dribble and hope that pays off with missed shots or rushed decisions in the fourth quarter.
The Over/Under for Game 6 is 222.0 points at both sportsbooks. The Over is being supported by 57 percent of the bets at DraftKings while the money bet on the prop market has been split. The Over has been backed by 53 percent of the bets at PointsBet but the Under has drawn 70 percent of the money.
PointsBet reported the Suns at +165 is the book's biggest liability ahead of Game 6. Milwaukee is now responsible for 58 percent of the series bets, opening at +145 to win the title and seeing those odds shorten to -425 with a 3-2 lead.
Paul remains the heaviest-backed player to win NBA Finals MVP honors at PointsBet, where 30.5 percent of the MVP bets and 55.8 percent of the money has been placed on him. Booker is next at 26.4 and 29.2 percent, respectively, while Antetokounmpo has been backed by 16.7 percent of the bets and 8.6 percent of the handle.
Fans make their way into the Deer District before Game 6 of the NBA basketball finals game between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Phoenix Suns Tuesday