The Milwaukee Bucks have completely dominated the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal Series. On Thursday according to ESPN, the Heat suffered their biggest playoff home loss in franchise history when they lost by 29 points, 113-84.
The domination by the Bucks comes one year after Miami beat Milwaukee in five games in the 2020 Eastern Conference semifinals in the Orlando bubble. A major reason for the Miami win was because 2019-20 NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo injured his ankle in game three, and after playing game four in a narrow Bucks win, he never played game five.
It was clearly a tale of two seasons for the Bucks in 2019-20. Prior to March 1, 2020, they posted a record of 52 wins and eight losses, for a sparkling winning percentage of .867. After March 1, the Bucks only won four of their last 13 regular season games, and did not have much momentum in the NBA Playoffs against the two Florida-based teams, the Orlando Magic, and Heat. In the 2020 Eastern Conference quarterfinals, the Bucks beat the Magic in five games, but were not dominant in any stretch, and then struggled mightily against the Heat as Miami reached the NBA Finals.
In 2019-20, the Bucks were the number one seed in the East. This season, they were seeded third behind the Philadelphia 76ers, and Brooklyn Nets, but had more momentum heading into the 2021 postseason than they did a year before. In their last 10 games this season, the Bucks won eight games. Then in their first three playoff games, the Bucks have beaten the Heat by 65 points. In each contest, Antetokounmpo has been the leading rebounder, as he has 48 total boards. The Bucks look just fine right now and after a blip on the radar screen from a year ago, and seemed poised to be a serious contender for the NBA Finals.
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