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Giannis Antetokounmpo (number 34) blocks Suns center Deandre Ayton
Photo:
Jeff Hanisch / USA TODAY Sports
Often it is last-second throws that decide tight games in the NBA.
In game four of the final series between Milwaukee and Phoenix, it was a defensive action by Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo that tilted the game in favor of his team.
With 84 seconds to go, Suns center Deandre Ayton climbed up to equalize for his team, but Antetokounmpo was there and blocked the ball in dire need.
The Bucks took advantage of the momentum, won the game 109: 103 and equalized the series.
Up until then, the game in Wisconsin was mainly the duel between Antetokounmpo's team-mate Khris Middleton and Devin Booker, who was outstanding that evening.
Both guards cracked the 40-point mark.
"Sorry for my language, but those were two oh-you-shit moments in a row," said Middleton, who paid tribute to Antetokounmpo's rescue act after the game.
"First you think they're getting the dunk, and then Giannis shows up."
"How much do you really want it?"
Teammates and experts immediately put the scene on par with the legendary LeBron James block, which gave the Cleveland Cavaliers the first and only championship in 2016.
Shortly before the end of the decisive seventh game, James had spectacularly cleared a layup attempt by Warriors forward Andre Iguodala and thus kept his team in the game.
This action has its own entry on Wikipedia.
“How much do you want it?
How much do you really want it
It's about mentality.
I saw this move coming and just hoped I would be there in time, ”said Antetokounmpo, who was named Defensive Player of the Year in 2020, about his memorable action in the current final series.
"At that moment, I had the feeling that our team had taken the corner."
Chris Paul goes underground
The fact that the Suns lost the second game in a row after two wins at the start and thus gave up the lead in the best-of-seven series was also due to the fact that their superstar Chris Paul did not have a good day.
“I've made some bad decisions.
I have to take better care of the ball, ”Paul said.
"We lost the ball today," said Suns coach Monty Williams, but saw the responsibility not only with his playmaker, but with the entire team.
Milwaukee victory means the team that can win two of the three remaining games will become the new champions.
The championship in the strongest basketball league in the world can therefore be decided at the earliest at the next stop in Milwaukee on Wednesday night (3:00 a.m. CEST / DAZN).
First, however, it's back to Phoenix for game five on Sunday night (3:00 a.m. CEST / DAZN).
A potential game seven would take place in Phoenix again.
"We can only win this series if we win one away," said Middleton, Milwaukee's top hat of the evening.
In order to win the title in front of their own audience, the Bucks have to win the upcoming game in Arizona.
For the rebounded Bucks, it would be the second championship in their history after 50 years of waiting.
The Suns have never won the title before.
tip / dpa