Bucks head back to Milwaukee down 2-0 to Hawks

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ATLANTA - The Milwaukee Bucks come home with a two-games-to-none deficit in their NBA first-round playoff series with Atlanta. The Hawks pulled away in the second half last night to win Game-Two, 96-to-86.

Milwaukee’s last lead was at three minutes into the second quarter, when it was 32-to-30. The Hawks then went on an 11-2 run, and they led by six at the break. Atlanta’s lead hit 15 in the first four minutes of the third period. The Bucks got to within eight points with eight minutes left, but could get no closer.

Joe Johnson hit a three at the six-minute mark to put Atlanta up by 13 – and it was a double-digit affair the rest of the way. Johnson led the Hawks with 27 points. Josh Smith almost had a triple-double with 21 points, 14 rebounds, and nine assists. Al Horford had 20 points and 10 boards, as Atlanta shot 47-and-a-half percent.

The Bucks had trouble from three-point range all night, hitting just 4-of-24 from beyond-the-arc. John Salmons led Milwaukee with 21 points. Ersan Ilyasova had a double-double before halftime. He ended up with 13 points and 15 rebounds. Brandon Jennings was held to nine points. He only shot 3-of-15 from the floor.

Game-Three of the best-of-seven series is on Saturday night at the Bradley Center. And the Hawks can still pull off a sweep in Game-Four on Monday night in Milwaukee.

Tags: wi sports, proam, basketball, bucks