Milwaukee, WI
Indiana Pacers offense wasn’t ready for the moment in Game 5 vs Milwaukee Bucks
MILWAUKEE — Entering Tuesday, the Indiana Pacers were up 3-1 in their first-round series with the Milwaukee Bucks and staring at the end of a possible five-game set. They had won three-straight outings in the series and had momentum — they took care of business on their home court, pulled out a dramatic win in Game 3, and had gotten excellent play from one or more of their big three in every game so far in the best-of-seven.
It was natural to think that Indiana could win Game 5 despite it being a road battle — they already won in Milwaukee during Game 2 — and it felt even more plausible when it was revealed that Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard were both out for the Bucks. With two stars sidelined, the Pacers were considered by many to be the favorites.
Instead, it was Milwaukee who ran away with things. Despite Indiana jumping out to a 10-point lead in the first quarter, the Bucks were ahead at halftime, and their lead reached 20+ in the third quarter. The Pacers never had enough fight in them to get back in the game after their great start, and they tossed away their first chance to secure the series victory.
“Sure, yeah,” Pacers center Myles Turner said after the game when asked if it felt like a missed opportunity. “I think that we’re embracing the challenge that’s coming with us. I think that going back to Indy, I think it will be a good setting for us.”
Indiana didn’t look like themselves after the first 12 minutes of play. After making seven three-point shots in the first quarter, they made just five in the rest of the game. That was both due to poor shooting and an inability to create the same quality of looks they did in the opening frame — their attempt rate from deep fell, too.
The Pacers paired that with just 42 points in the paint, a lower number for the blue and gold. In the regular season, they very often climbed past that number, though they have struggled to do so in the postseason through five games.
“We just got stagnant,” Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton said of his team’s offensive performance. “Stopped making shots, stopped playing our brand of basketball.”
In Haliburton’s eyes, the Bucks controlled the pace. When the Pacers have to take the ball out of the net all night, they can’t run and play in transition as often, and they finished this game with just five fast break points, their fewest in the series so far.
Indiana’s bad defense bled into their offense in that way. They conceded 115 points, their most in regulation during the best-of-seven set so far. Milwaukee did well to get to their spots and finish plays with Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis leading the way.
On top of their tempo and defensive struggles, the Pacers stagnated offensively due to the Bucks defensive adjustments. Milwaukee changed their defensive matchups, putting starting center Brook Lopez on Aaron Nesmith and sticking Middleton on Turner. That disrupted the Pacers flow and forced them to think, and they played slower as a result. They rarely got into their second or third actions throughout the night.
The Bucks were switching more often defensively, and they relied on their veterans more often in this game. Pick-and-rolls were less effective as a result. Indiana never figured out a consistent way to break down what the third-seeded Bucks were doing, and it cost them.
“They picked up their intensity,” Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said of the Bucks and their better play. He thinks this series has been about defense. “Having them get to 115… our defense needed to be better.”
In the end, the blue and gold had their worst offensive and defensive game of the series, at least numerically. They rarely got going from deep, couldn’t get into the paint, and struggled with the Bucks new look on defense. That combination crushed Indiana and led to their second defeat in the series.
“I think we settled,” Turner said of his team’s offense. He pointed to their lower-than-usual assist number as evidence that they strayed from their typical play style. “We kind of got away from ourselves.”
Throughout the series, adjustments and focus have been key for the Pacers. They were unfocused early in Game 1, and it cost them. Their inability to adjust and recalibrate during Game 5 was equally punishing. They still have two more chances to close out the series, but they came up short in their first opportunity. The team has to find their identity again while adjusting to Milwaukee’s switch-heavy style.
“I think, more than anything, you have to embrace what’s in front of you… I think we’re definitely looking forward to the challenge,” Turner said of the upcoming task at hand.
Game 6 is on Thursday night in Indianapolis. To get a win and close out the series, the Pacers need to play more like the Pacers and find a way to get their offense going.
- Adjustments and focus were key for Indiana Pacers in Game 4. They will be even more vital the rest of the series. CLICK HERE.
- Myles Turner has his best career playoff game for Indiana Pacers as film time and maturity mesh.CLICK HERE.
- Tyrese Haliburton and the Pacers delivered a moment fans waited five years to see. CLICK HERE.
- Indiana Pacers survive massive Milwaukee Bucks comeback for overtime win in Game 3. CLICK HERE.
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Milwaukee Public Schools superintendent talks about youth gun violence
Milwaukee Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Cassellius has worked in Minneapolis, Memphis and Boston. She says she has never seen gun violence so bad.
A Milwaukee teenager convicted of killing two St. Anthony High School students will spend the rest of his life behind bars.
Circuit Judge Laura Crivello handed down the life sentence for Moses Martinez on Nov. 14. Martinez filed papers that same day signaling his intent to appeal the conviction, online court records show.
Martinez was 17 when prosecutors say he fatally shot Diego Herrera-Mejia, 16, and Isaac Rodriguez, 15, on the 800 block of West Manitoba Street on June 15, 2024.
In August, a jury found Martinez, now 18, guilty of two counts of first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless injury and fleeing police.
The state dismissed charges of driving a vehicle without the owner’s consent and misdemeanor possession of a dangerous weapon by a minor.
Here’s what prosecutors say happened to Diego Herrera-Mejia and Isaac Rodriguez
Family members told police investigators the two teens were walking with a few friends and cousins on Manitoba Street when “some guys on a scooter” came up to them and tried to provoke them.
A third person, a 14-year-old girl, also was shot, but survived the attack.
Martinez was arrested two months after the shooting.
Diego and Isaac, friends since middle school, were set to begin their sophomore year together in the fall at St. Anthony, on Milwaukee’s south side.
According to a criminal complaint, a 14-year-old girl told police she was part of a group that was walking away from a party when two teens approached on a scooter.
At some point, one of the two teens pulled out a gun and started shooting at the group, hitting Diego and Isaac, the complaint says. The girl also was injured by gunfire but survived.
Why was this case important?
Martinez’s trial offered the latest evidence of Milwaukee’s ongoing struggle with a swell of juvenile crime involving guns and homicides.
There have been 128 homicides reported in the city of Milwaukee in 2025 as of Nov. 13. During the same period in 2024, the year Diego and Isaac were killed, there were 117 killings reported in the city, according to Milwaukee police statistics.
There have been 20 homicides reported in Milwaukee since January involving victims 17 and younger, compared with 17 during all of 2024, department statistics say.
In 2023, there were 16 child homicides reported in the city.
Chris Ramirez covers courts for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He can be reached at caramirez@gannett.com.
Courtesy: Milwaukee Admirals
MILWAUKEE – Admirals netminder Ethan Haider made life “ruff” for the Stars as Milwaukee got back on the winning track with a 3-1 victory over Texas on Saturday night – the team’s first Sendik’s Dog Day of the season.
By the numbers:
Texas took an early 1-0 lead as Kole Lind scored on their first shot of the game 1:16 into the opening period, but that was all the Stars would get as Haider backboned the Ads defense, turning aside the next 22 shots and helping to kill off all four Texas power-plays.
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Haider stopped 22 of the 23 shots he faced to pick up his first AHL win.
The Admirals would score the game’s final three goals beginning with Reid Schaefer’s first of the season at 11:04 of the first. Ryan Ufko carried the puck from the top of the right circle around the Texas net and had his wrap-around attempt denied by netminder Ben Kraws, but Schaefer pounced on the rebound and scored into an open net.
Jordan Oesterle’s seeing-eyed shot from the left point with less than two minutes to go in the first found its way through traffic and over the shoulder of Kraws to give the Admirals the lead at 2-1.
Jake Lucchini’s second goal of the week and third of the season at 6:59 of the second period gave the Ads some insurance. The play started when Milwaukee came 3-on-3 into the Texas zone and Cole O’Hara left a drop pass for Lucchini, and he ripped it blocker-side for a 3-1 advantage.
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Schaefer and Oesterle each finished with a goal and an assist in the contest to pace the offense and help Milwaukee to their eighth win in their first 12 games of the season.
What’s next:
The Admirals are back in action with a pair of games next weekend in Henderson against the Silver Knights. Their next home game is against Iowa on Wednesday, Nov. 26 at 7 p.m.
The Source: The Milwaukee Admirals provided this report.
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