The Milwaukee Bucks have been the regular season pacesetters in the NBA's Eastern Conference in recent seasons, but they sit third heading into the closing stages of the 2020-21 campaign.
It is the Philadelphia 76ers and Brooklyn Nets who instead lead the way, tied with 39-20 records - 2.5 games clear of Milwaukee.
Yet the Sixers had first place outright prior to Thursday's game against the Bucks in which they failed to recover from a tough first quarter.
Philly do not have to wait long for revenge, though, with the two teams meeting once more at Fiserv Forum on Saturday.
MVP challenges are on the line as well as seedings in the East as two potential title contenders get prepared to go again.
TOP PERFORMERS
Joel Embiid - Philadelphia 76ers
Embiid was the MVP favourite until a knee injury at the start of March that forced him to miss almost a month of action.
He was averaging 29.9 points and 11.5 rebounds per game and the 76ers had a 24-7 record with him on the floor. They were 2-5 in the seven games Embiid missed prior to his extended lay-off.
The center returned earlier this month, seemingly with enough time to wrestle the top individual award back from Nikola Jokic, and he has since averaged 30.1 points, missing only a single game.
But the Sixers have now lost three in a row and Embiid's hopes appear to be fading after he was outshone by the reigning MVP.
Giannis Antetokounmpo - Milwaukee Bucks
It does not appear there will be a third MVP win in a row for Antetokounmpo after his momentum was checked by sitting six straight games.
But the 'Greek Freak' was back to his best against the 76ers, scoring a game-high 27 points, and can focus instead on a first title triumph in the postseason.
And Antetokounmpo feels playing a fellow challenger again on Saturday "prepares you for the playoffs".
"Playing teams back to back is awesome," he said.
"On Saturday, they're going to come out and they're going to play harder, they're going to try to execute. We've got to do the same. We've got to do exactly the same."
KEY BATTLE - SLOW START CAN SINK SIXERS
For the 76ers, "playing harder" will have to start from the tip-off. Their 14-point first-quarter deficit proved too significant against such a talented team.
As the Sixers missed one of the best defensive players in the league in Ben Simmons due to illness, Milwaukee firmly had the upper hand early on.
Philadelphia had no answer as they allowed 40 points, their second-worst mark in a first quarter this year. This came as the Bucks shot at 73.7 per cent from the field through 12 minutes, the best rate among the Sixers' 2020-21 opponents.
Jrue Holiday, a star on both ends, had seven of his 12 points in the first three minutes alone.
"That first quarter, they get every shot they wanted," Doc Rivers said. "We didn't offer any resistance."
HEAD TO HEAD
Thursday's game was the teams' second this season and the second Milwaukee victory after they won in overtime in March, again led by Antetokounmpo (32 points, 15 rebounds).
Antetokounmpo has averaged 20.8 points for his career but 22.6 against the 76ers, against whom he boasts a 19-5 record and posted a career-high 52 in 2019.
The Bucks have a 113-102 lead over Philadelphia all-time in the regular season.
NBA acknowledges refereeing errors in 76ers chaotic loss to Knicks
The NBA has acknowledged numerous refereeing errors after the Philadelphia 76ers were on the wrong end of late decisions in a chaotic defeat to the New York Knicks.
Nick Nurse, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey all voiced 76ers frustration after the Knicks came back from 101-96 down to win 104-101 on Monday in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference quarter-final series.
Philadelphia coach Nurse suggested his timeout calls were ignored on two separate occasions in the frantic finale, while Maxey and Embiid were left aggrieved with foul decisions during the same period.
In its Last Two Minute Report, the league concurred with the 76ers claims after admitting Maxey was fouled in the build-up to Jalen Brunson's 3-pointer that cut Philadelphia's lead to just two.
The same report also found that Maxey was illegally felled by Josh Hart, turning over for Donte DiVincenzo missing a decisive go-ahead 3-pointer before making the winning shot with 13 seconds remaining.
"[Maxey] did his job," Embiid said after the game when asked about the turnover in the closing seconds. "That's on the league. That's on the NBA.
"That's on the referees. I hate to put the game on them. But I am sure the two-minute report is going to come out and we are going to see what happened."
Maxey blamed himself and refused to dwell on the matter after the 76ers fell 2-0 down in the best-of-seven series, while Nurse was also left disappointed on the sidelines by the officiating.
Nurse claimed he twice attempted to call timeout, with the league's report acknowledging one of those should have been granted when 76ers point guard Kyle Lowry was inbounding the ball.
"I guess I got to run out onto the floor or do something to make sure and get his attention, but I needed a timeout there to advance it," Nurse lamented after the game.
The Last Two Minutes Report reviewed two other errors in officiating, having missed an Embiid foul on DiVincenzo before Brunson's 3-pointer and a defensive violation by Knicks forward OG Anunoby.
Though the NBA acknowledged the mistakes, no replay will be granted – a decision the Knicks are all too familiar with.
New York wanted a replay earlier this season after referee Jacyn Goble made an incorrect call for a foul on Houston Rockets guard Aaron Holiday, though that call was labelled as human error.
Both teams will be hoping for less drama when Games 3 and 4 come on Thursday and Sunday in Philadelphia.
NBA acknowledge refereeing errors in 76ers chaotic loss to Knicks
The NBA has acknowledged numerous refereeing errors after the Philadelphia 76ers were on the wrong end of late decisions in a chaotic defeat to the New York Knicks.
Nick Nurse, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey all voiced 76ers frustration after the Knicks came back from 101-96 down to win 104-101 on Monday in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference quarter-final series.
Philadelphia coach Nurse suggested his timeout calls were ignored on two separate occasions in the frantic finale, while Maxey and Embiid were left aggrieved with foul decisions during the same period.
In its Last Two Minute Report, the league concurred with the 76ers claims after admitting Maxey was fouled in the build-up to Jalen Brunson's 3-pointer that cut Philadelphia's lead to just two.
The same report also found that Maxey was illegally felled by Josh Hart, turning over for Donte DiVincenzo missing a decisive go-ahead 3-pointer before making the winning shot with 13 seconds remaining.
"[Maxey] did his job," Embiid said after the game when asked about the turnover in the closing seconds. "That's on the league. That's on the NBA.
"That's on the referees. I hate to put the game on them. But I am sure the two-minute report is going to come out and we are going to see what happened."
Maxey blamed himself and refused to dwell on the matter after the 76ers fell 2-0 down in the best-of-seven series, while Nurse was also left disappointed on the sidelines by the officiating.
Nurse claimed he twice attempted to call timeout, with the league's report acknowledging one of those should have been granted when 76ers point guard Kyle Lowry was inbounding the ball.
"I guess I got to run out onto the floor or do something to make sure and get his attention, but I needed a timeout there to advance it," Nurse lamented after the game.
The Last Two Minutes Report reviewed two other errors in officiating, having missed an Embiid foul on DiVincenzo before Brunson's 3-pointer and a defensive violation by Knicks forward OG Anunoby.
Though the NBA acknowledged the mistakes, no replay will be granted – a decision the Knicks are all too familiar with.
New York wanted a replay earlier this season after referee Jacyn Goble made an incorrect call for a foul on Houston Rockets guard Aaron Holiday, though that call was labelled as human error.
Both teams will be hoping for less drama when Games 3 and 4 come on Thursday and Sunday in Philadelphia.
Kidd hails Doncic's defense after Mavs level Clippers series
Jason Kidd lauded Luka Doncic's defensive work after the Dallas Mavericks saw off the Los Angeles Clippers.
The Mavs beat the Clippers 96-93 on Tuesday, restoring parity in their playoff series.
Doncic finished with 33 points and 13 rebounds, though it was his defensive efforts that impressed coach Kidd.
"I think his defense has been great this whole series," Kidd said.
"We know they're going to put him in pick-and-roll. A couple years ago we saw this, and we had to tell him to participate.
"But I think he's participating at a high level on both ends. He's leading not just on the offensive end but also the defensive end."
According to ESPN, the Clippers missed all 11 shots that were contested by Doncic, whose teammate Maxi Kleber added: "When he gets his stops like this and pushes it, it's even more fun for us because we already know what he does on offense.
"It spreads to everybody else. He's bringing the energy, and he's going to set the tone for us. And when he does stuff like that, it gives everybody juice."
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