3 Improvements Bucks Need to Make for Game 2

The Milwaukee Bucks dropped Game 1 to the Indiana Pacers in convincing fashion, falling 98-117 in a lopsided series opener.

Indiana took control late in the second quarter with a decisive run that cracked the game open and exposed Milwaukee’s lack of resistance. The Pacers turned a semi-close contest into a rout, stretching their lead to double digits before halftime and never looking back. By the break, the Bucks were staring down a 24-point deficit, and things only got worse from there.

The Pacers kept their foot on the gas in the third, ballooning their lead to as many as 28 points while Milwaukee scrambled for answers. The Bucks showed a brief pulse late in the third quarter, cutting the lead to 12, but Indiana quickly swatted away any momentum and slammed the door shut.

Game 1 wasn’t just a loss—it was a reality check. The Bucks were outplayed, outcoached, and out-hustled for most of the night. They lacked urgency, struggled with defensive discipline, and never found an offensive rhythm.

Now, with Game 2 looming, Milwaukee faces a gut-check moment. Adjustments must be made on both ends of the floor if they want to avoid falling into a 0-2 hole before the series shifts back to Fiserv Forum.

Let’s break down what went wrong in Game 1—and what changes the Bucks must make to avoid another embarrassing showing.

1. Bucks Need to Sustain Their Defense

Sustain is the name of the game.

The Pacers finished the regular season with the second-most passes per game in the league. They’re a well-drilled unit that thrives on quick ball movement, constantly swinging it side to side and ensuring multiple players get a touch each possession.

They also love to push the pace. That combination puts pressure on opposing defenses to stay locked in for nearly the full shot clock. Even if you stop their initial action, Indiana doesn’t slow down—their aggression comes in relentless waves. Defending them isn’t about one good effort; it’s about sustaining that effort through the entire possession.

Game 1 was textbook Pacers basketball. They logged 317 passes—the most of any team in the opening playoff games—and tied for the highest mark with 45 potential assists.

The play below is a prime example of the defensive intensity Milwaukee needs to bring every time down the court.

They initially wall off T.J. McConnell's drive and force him to kick it back to Pascal Siakam in the corner. After Siakam attempts to back Gary Trent Jr. down, the Bucks again swarm and force the ball out of his hands.

Siakam finds Jarace Walker under the hoop, but Bobby Portis is there to prevent any shot attempt. Walker dribbles back to the three-point line before whipping the rock to Thomas Bryant in the opposite corner for a missed, contested three.

Only, the problem was that this sequence was the exception, not the rule, for the Bucks’ defense. Far too often, they struggled to sustain their effort through an entire possession.

The Pacers were able to find an easy look on one of the first possessions of the game. Haliburton brings the ball across halfcourt, with Myles Turner setting up for a potential ball screen on the wing.

Instead, Turner receives a pocket pass, and Kyle Kuzma comes from the weakside wing to defend him. With Antetokounmpo staying with his player in the opposite corner, Nembhard is left wide open for a three.

Even though the shot missed, it only took the Pacers two passes and four seconds after crossing halfcourt to generate a wide-open look.

The Bucks' defense tightened in the second half after they scrapped their ICE pick-and-roll coverage in favor of a switching scheme. Doc Rivers would be wise to go to the switch right from the opening tip in Game 2—Milwaukee can’t afford to head into halftime staring at another 24-point deficit.