National Basketball Association

NBA playoffs: Top moments from Atlanta Hawks vs. Milwaukee Bucks Game 1

Updated Jun. 23, 2021 11:32 p.m. ET

share

facebookxredditlink

Which team will seize early control in the Eastern Conference finals?

That was the question heading into Wednesday's Game 1 clash between the Atlanta Hawks and Milwaukee Bucks, with superstars Trae Young and Giannis Antetokounmpo at the forefront for their respective teams.

The answer was Young and the Hawks, following another massive, career-high performance from Atlanta's superstar guard.

Young's 48 points were the third-most scored in a playoff game in Hawks franchise history, behind a pair of 50-point performances from Bob Pettit in 1958 and Dominique Wilkins in 1986.

In a back-and-forth game, the Hawks took their show on the road yet again to take the early advantage in a series, toppling Milwaukee 116-113.

Giannis finished with 34 points to lead the Bucks, but it wasn't quite enough to keep home court in the Eastern Conference finals.

Here are the top moments from Game 1:

Brook Lopez gave the Bucks fans at Fiserv Forum plenty to cheer about early.

The Bucks' big man hit a triple to score the game's first points, then rocked the rim with authority moments later to give Milwaukee an early 7-4 lead.

For more up-to-date news on all things Bucks, click here to register for alerts on the FOX Sports app!

Not to be outdone, Giannis also achieved liftoff in the first quarter, taking a feed from Jrue Holiday on a two-on-one fast break and flushing it home.

That made the score 13-10, prompting Hawks head coach Nate McMillan to call a timeout and draw some air out of the arena.

McMillan's call proved to be prescient, as Atlanta soon took its first lead of the game since being up 4-3 at the 10:54 mark, courtesy of a running layup from Young to make it 14-13.

For more up-to-date news on all things Hawks, click here to register for alerts on the FOX Sports app!

The first quarter ended 28-25 in favor of the hosts, with Young leading all scorers with 12 points. Despite the tight score, both teams struggled to shoot 3-pointers. Atlanta went 2-for-11 from distance in the first 12 minutes, while the Bucks went 1-for-10 from beyond the arc.

Milwaukee continued attacking to start the second quarter, but Young kept his Hawks in the game by scoring at will and finding his teammates in the midst of a 17-7 run to give Atlanta a 46-45 lead with 4:06 to go in the half.

The Bucks weathered that storm and started one of their own.

Holiday began to find his stroke, finishing the half with 16 points to lead the Bucks.

Young continued to feast, however, totaling a game-leading 25 points in the first half.

Meanwhile, no other Hawks player finished the half in double figures in points.

When the halftime buzzer sounded, the scoreline stood at 59-54 in favor of the Bucks.

The third quarter started with some fireworks, including something for those who enjoy defense.

But fear not, there was still plenty to take in on the offensive end ⁠— such as Young finding John Collins with an alley-oop on a breakaway.

That connection continued later in the quarter, when Young hooked up with Collins for an even better dunk, using the glass to hit Collins at the rim.

But this shimmy and triple from Young will likely be the first entry on his highlight reel from the game.

Young's exploits ⁠— 37 points in the first three quarters ⁠— even caught the attention of "The King."

The Hawks outscored Milwaukee 34-26 in the frame to take an 88-85 lead heading into the game's final quarter.

With 11 points in the first three quarters of action, Khris Middleton was relatively anonymous for the Bucks, but he came alive in the fourth. 

He hit back-to-back jumpers to tie the game at 96 with just under six minutes left to play.

Then he hit Giannis for an alley-oop dunk to keep pace with Atlanta after Young hit two of three free-throw attempts on the other end.

After a key defensive stop around the one-minute mark, Middleton missed a jumper with the score 111-110 in Milwaukee's favor.

On the ensuing possession, Young missed a driving layup, but Clint Capela was there for the putback to give the Hawks a 112-111 lead. 

Young then hit a pair of free throws to build Atlanta's lead, and Giannis matched him at the stripe to keep it tight at 114-113.

The game continued at the free-throw line, as Young buried two more to make it 116-113 and give him a whopping 48 points in the contest.

Milwaukee got one final look via a Middleton attempt from 3, but it didn't hit, and Atlanta swiped Game 1 on the road yet again.

For more up-to-date news on all things NBA, click here to register for alerts on the FOX Sports app!

share

Get more from National Basketball Association Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more

in this topic

National Basketball Association

Atlanta Hawks

Milwaukee Bucks

Giannis Antetokounmpo

Trae Young

NBA - Atlanta Hawks vs. Milwaukee Bucks - 06/24/2021

Brook Lopez

Jrue Holiday

Khris Middleton

John Collins

Clint Capela