The Chicago Bulls will be on the road inside of the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in Game 2 of the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs to take on the defending NBA Champions Milwaukee Bucks. The Bulls backed into the playoffs by losing four of their last five games to end up with the sixth seed while the Bucks are playing strong at this point.
Last games records
The Milwaukee Bucks have swept the four-game season series during the regular season as well as winning Game 1 by a final score of 93-86 at home. Milwaukee has dominated this series as they have won by an average of 13.2 points throughout the five games thus far.
Matchup Information
Bulls at Bucks Betting Analysis
Chicago Bulls Betting Analysis
Center Nikola Vucevic had a big game despite shooting just 9-for-27 from the floor and 2-for-10 from beyond the arc. During Game 1, he finished with 24 points, 17 rebounds, three assists, a steal, and two blocks.
As a team, they have struggled shooting the basketball as they shot 32.3 percent from the floor and just 18.9 percent from three-point range. If they can figure out how to get some better looks and have a few threes fall for them, it will be a great chance for them to win and split the first two games on the road.
Milwaukee Bucks Betting Analysis
The Milwaukee Bucks have been doing well using their size to get what they want in the first game of the series. They currently are the leader in rebounds as they had 58 rebounds as a team in Game 1 and allowed just 86 points in the postseason thus far.
Small forward Giannis Antetokounmpo had a huge game despite some foul and turnover problems as he finished with 27 points, 16 rebounds, three assists, and two blocks. As a team, Milwaukee turned the ball over 21 times so if they can clean up their play, it will be a great sign for the Bucks to go up 2-0.
Updates
Both teams are dealing with some injuries heading into Game 2 of the series as Chicago is without point guard Lonzo Ball (knee) as he has been ruled out for the entire playoffs. Shooting guard Matt Thomas (leg) is also ruled out for Game 2.
For Milwaukee, point guard George Hill (abdomen) is already ruled out for this game. Small forward Jordan Nwora (back) and enter Bobby Portis (calf) are both listed as probable according to the most recent reports.
Bulls at Bucks Betting Prediction
The NBA betting odds are sitting around Milwaukee being a 10-point favorite at home. However, that seems a little too high as the Bulls were not able to hit some three-pointers and lost by seven points in Game 1. It is difficult to imagine the trio of DeMar DeRozan, Nikola Vucevic, and Zach LaVine to shoot 21-for-71 from the floor and 4-for-22 from three.
With George Hill ruled out for the Bucks, the defense is going to be a little lesser than what they are typically. Outside of a dominant first quarter, Chicago actually outscored Milwaukee 65-59 from the second quarter on. All in all, give me the points as this should be a close game with Chicago being able to shoot the ball better from their top three guys and getting the jitters out.
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