Nets vs Bucks Game 4 Betting Preview: Can the Bucks Tough Out Another Win Over the Nets to Tie Up the Series?

I think most of us were expecting the Nets vs Bucks series to look a little different with Game 3 in Milwaukee, but I do not think anyone predicted a game in the 80s though. Not in this century. The most important thing is that the Bucks avoided disaster and got the win.

The first half had some wild swings and then things were nice and tight in the second half. It looked a lot like playoff basketball, whereas the first couple of games lacked that intensity. Milwaukee has to keep playing with a chip on their shoulder if they are going to even things up in Game 4.

Brooklyn Nets (2-1) vs Milwaukee Bucks (1-2), ABC, 3:00 PM ET

The Nets Need A Response

Brooklyn went to Milwaukee with all the confidence in the world. They were up 2-0 in the series, and that was with James Harden playing less than a minute in the series. There is every reason to still feel pretty good, but a little less so than a couple of days ago.

Harden has been ruled out for Game 4, but there continues to be no reason to rush him as long as the Nets are still up.

In the close loss, we saw the efficiency of the Nets offense take a major hit. Kevin Durant might have scored 30 points, but he needed 28 shots to do so. He also turned the ball over four times. Kyrie Irving shot just 9 for 22, and Joe Harris was just 1 for 11 with a team-low of -11 for the game. All of those numbers are outliers, but they are also things that were part of Milwaukee’s game plan.

The Nets are just 1-2 on the road in the playoffs now.

Milwaukee Has Made It A Series

Game 3 was a much-needed win. Milwaukee was desperate, but they got it and now they take a breath, though just a short one.

The Bucks came out looking great but by halftime, they had given back almost all of their 19-point first-quarter lead.

I am not a fan of coach Mike Budenholzer. I don’t want to give him too much credit, but clearly it was the right move to increase the usage of his best players in Game 3. After two substandard games, Khris Middleton led all scorers with 35 points. Giannis was right behind him with 33. If you are going to go down, you might as well do so with your best options.

It is concerning that the rest of the team scored only 18 points for the whole game though. Nine points came from Jrue Holiday, but the other two starters, Brook Lopez and PJ Tucker, combined for just three. I love Tucker, and he clearly got under the skin of Durant. But they are going to need more production from that trio if they are to survive the series.

The Bucks know what they need to do to compete now. They just have to keep doing it. They are underdogs again at home, and that looks like great value to me.

Brooklyn Nets vs Milwaukee Bucks Game 4 Matchup: Picks, Odds, Stats and More