By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
48 minutes wasn’t enough to separate the Brooklyn Nets and the Milwaukee Bucks.
After Kevin Durant sank the game-tying turn-around shot to force overtime, the Bucks began to surge in the extra period and hang on to beat the Nets, 115-111, to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.
It was a see-saw affair from the first quarter as both teams traded baskets with their superstars operating early on the offensive end.
Milwaukee stuck with their Game 6 plan and let Giannis Antetokounmpo dominate the paint while the pesky PJ Tucker hounded Durant.
Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton struggled early with their shooting but turned it up in the second half. The newly acquired two-way player from the New Orleans Pelicans scored five crucial points with 1:30 to go in the fourth quarter to provide a cushion for the Nets.
However, Durant closed the final quarter with a 6-0 run of his own and forced another five minutes of action to determine the winner.
The Nets were the first to get on the board off a bank floater from Bruce Brown Jr. and both teams went on a scoring drought for the next three minutes.
In the most crucial stretch of the clash, Antetokounmpo converted on a short stab hook while the shot of the game was created by Middleton who provided the two-point lead with 40 seconds left in overtime.
Brooklyn had the chance to win the game but an exhausted Durant threw an airball three-point attempt that ended their season.
Milwaukee’s dynamic duo in Middleton and Antetokounmpo ended the game with 23 and 40 points, respectively, while Durant and James Harden had 48 and 22, respectively.
Milwaukee will now advance to the Conference Finals where they await for the winner between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Atlanta Hawks who will be battling it out in a do-or-die Game 7 today.
