Haliburton and Pacers eliminate
Bucks from playoffs, closing OT with 8-0 run to win 119-118
[April 30, 2025]
By MICHAEL MAROT
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Tyrese Haliburton thought he let the Indiana
Pacers down in the fourth quarter.
Turns out, he was just warming up for one of the most memorable
finishes in franchise history.
Indiana forced two turnovers in the final 29 seconds of overtime,
and Haliburton blew past Giannis Antetokounmpo for the go-ahead
layup with 1.3 seconds left to close an 8-0 run that sent the Pacers
past the Milwaukee Bucks 119-118 on Tuesday night for a 4-1 series
victory.
“This one will go down as one of the all-time great Pacers wins
because of the circumstances, because of what was on the line,”
coach Rick Carlisle said. “Ty, obviously, authored a big part of
this ending. So congratulations to him.”
The Pacers will face top-seeded Cleveland in the Eastern Conference
semifinals. Game 1 is Sunday.
Haliburton finished with 26 points and 10 assists as he improved to
9-0 in home playoff games. But after missing some open shots and a
layup late in regulation, Haliburton needed his teammates' support
to help the Pacers steal another series from Milwaukee.
Antetokounmpo tried to will his short-handed Bucks to victory,
finishing with 30 points, 20 rebounds and 13 assists. Gary Trent Jr.
had 33 points and made four of his eight 3-pointers in overtime, but
he also committed the two game-changing turnovers late in OT, and
his full-court heave at the buzzer was nowhere close.

The Bucks have lost three consecutive first-round playoff series,
the last two to Indiana, and this increasingly chippy rivalry ended
fittingly with a shoving match between the teams at midcourt.
Haliburton's father, John, sparked the fracas when he ran onto the
court and started talking to Antetokounmpo.
Haliburton didn't even realize what happened because he was
celebrating on top of the scorer's table, his arms raised, exhorting
the sellout crowd wearing yellow T-shirts to scream even louder —
just like former Pacers great Reggie Miller.
“I got a little down about it,” Haliburton said, referring to his
misses late in regulation. “But my teammates encouraged me to stay
with it. They said we would get a chance to win at the end, they
would rely on me to do that.”
He delivered.
But it wasn't just Haliburton.
[to top of second column] |

Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) shoots the game winning
basket over Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, left, and
guard Gary Trent Jr., right, during overtime in Game 5 of an NBA
basketball first-round playoff series in Indianapolis, Tuesday,
April 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Andrew Nembhard set up the decisive run by making a 3-pointer to cut
a seven-point deficit to 118-114 with 34.1 seconds left. Nembhard
then stole Trent's inbound pass with 29 seconds left near the
sideline to set up Haliburton's three-point play that got Indiana
within 118-117.
Then, with the Pacers pressuring the ball and the Bucks scrambling,
Trent fumbled a long pass out of bounds with 10.8 seconds left to
set up Haliburton's go-ahead layup.
“I thought the turnovers obviously were huge,” Bucks coach Doc
Rivers said. “Two of the three were really unforced. But I thought
we had two huge defensive mistakes that we made. We came out of the
timeout with a foul to give. We were supposed to use it. Didn’t use
it. Those are the things that just kill you.”
Myles Turner had 21 points and nine rebounds while Aaron Nesmith
added 19 points and 12 rebounds for the Pacers.
In an effort to avoid a third straight first-round exit, Rivers
plugged guards AJ Green and Kevin Porter Jr. and forward Bobby
Portis Jr. into the starting lineup. The Bucks were missing 10-time
All-Star Damian Lillard, who tore his left Achilles tendon in Game 4
on Sunday night.
All five starters scored in double figures for Milwaukee.
“I'm not going to do this," Antetokounmpo said when asked if he
thought he could win a second NBA title in Milwaukee. “Whatever I
say, I know how it's going to translate. I wish I was still playing.
I wish I was still like competing and going back out there.”
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved
 |