Young Bucks show promise, heart in double-OT loss to Bulls

MILWAUKEE -- The Bucks' promotional T-shirts that parachuted down in the second half of Thursday's double-overtime thriller against the Bulls read, "Own the future."

The message was simple enough, except that Jason Kidd's Bucks, seeking to end an eight-game playoff losing streak, seemed as if they had no intention of waiting. The Bucks, goaded by their eagerly rowdy fans, whiffed on two separate chances to win the game, first at the end of regulation on a missed 3-point attempt and then at the end of the first overtime session on an errant O.J. Mayo jumper.

By that point, dragging the injury-riddled Bulls to a second overtime, Jimmy Butler and Derrick Rose had had enough. Butler, playing in the same building where he initially caught scouts' eyes at Marquette, intercepted the first pass of Milwaukee's overtime possession and cruised down court for an easy breakaway jam.

Rose, whose game-high 34 points and 48 minutes were both season-highs, stole Milwaukee's next possession as well, drew a foul and converted both free throws. The game tilted after that with Rose making two more buckets, and the Bulls would eventually escape 113-106 to stake a commanding 3-0 lead with Game 4 set for Saturday in Milwaukee.

But Kidd's ever-improving Bucks hardly wilted from the significant shine of postseason pressure.

"We're playing against a hungry team, a hungry young team," Rose said. "They're pushing us. They're forcing us to play, which we need that, finding ways to win games. And that's why you got to love the playoffs."

The Bucks built an 18-point lead midway through the second quarter on the strength and length of Giannis Antetokounmpo and John Henson. Simply put, it was the Bucks at peak form. Breaking out in transition, flushing second-chance opportunities with extended limbs, the run highlighted exactly why this Bucks team has so much promise, especially with Jabari Parker on the mend. But for all the progress that they've made in improving by 26 wins from last season, this is still the first postseason for eight of their players.

Which is why the game turned on its head in the final 4:54 of the first half. The Bulls reeled off an 18-4 run featuring two 3-pointers, an alley-oop, and a momentum-altering block on the Greek Freak. Not accustomed to taking the Bulls to task, the Bucks' lead didn't last long.

The strangest part of Thursday's back-and-forth rollercoaster was that, given the proximity of Chicago to Milwaukee, the crowd was near evenly split. Every made basket was met with cheers instead of being drowned out by boos. Bucks forward Ersan Ilyasova air-balled a 3-pointer, provoking the Chicago contingent into the obvious cheer as the Bucks' faction fell silent. It had the feel of an early-round NCAA tournament game played on neutral court with two hungry fan bases on hand.

"That crowd was really loud. It was really hard to hear plays," Taj Gibson said from the Bulls locker room. "That was the loudest I ever heard the Milwaukee arena. … Every time they scored it got loud, every time we scored it got loud. Defensive coverages got loud. I didn't know who was going for who."

The odd environment brewed an even stranger game. Rose had several vintage moves, making it seem almost impossible that he's only played eight games since his third major knee surgery.

"He had one play where he dug out a long rebound in the corner, took off, and when he's coming at you with a head of steam, he's impossible to guard," Tom Thibodeau said. "Often times he's taking on contact, you're thinking he's going to get the call because he never complains, he attacks. That's the mode we want him in. He had one play where he didn't get the call. I liked what he did on the next play. He made them make the call."

Rose was fantastic as a distributor, but even more lethal from beyond the arc where he drained 4 of 8 3-point attempts. As a team the Bulls hit 14 of 33 shots from distance, the third-straight game they've hit at least 12 3s. The Bulls are at their best when Rose is penetrating, forcing defenses to collapse, and then sharing the wealth.

"All series long, they put two on the ball in different situations, so if we move the ball right and find the open man and have the proper spacing, we're gonna get good looks," Mike Dunleavy said, who has 11 3-pointers in three games.

The Bulls' outside shooting helped build a 10-point lead with 2:50 left, but Khris Middleton hit back-to-back 3-pointers and buried a jumper with just seconds remaining to tie it at 95. And even though the Bulls eventually salted the win away (two overtimes too late), the feisty Bucks made an impression while giving Chicago all it could handle.

"They got a of talent. Just missing a couple key elements. A little more maturity," Gibson said. "They got a lot of guys that came out of nowhere."

And of Antetokounmpo, the Bucks' frontcourt monster they eventually hope to pair with Parker?

"He's a freak. Once he gets that mid-range jumper, he's going to be unstoppable."