With their 144-97 victory Tuesday night, the Milwaukee Bucks not only beat the Miami Heat, they overloaded them with an unprecedented barrage of three-point shots, setting an NBA record with 29 long baskets falling in their 51 attempts were made. They trailed the previous point of 27 by just under 8 minutes, and Sam Merrill was named to hold the record with 6:07 left in the fourth quarter.
The Bucks set the Houston Rockets’ record against the Phoenix Suns on April 7, 2019.
There have been 108 previous cases in the NBA history of a team trying 50 or more 3s in a regular game. The Bucks were the first team to try 50 3s and shoot 50% or better on the attempts (they made 56.9% on Tuesday). With the help of ESPN Stats & Information, what were the most interesting numbers to take away from this breakdown of long-range shooting?
• 12: In addition to the record for most 3s made, the Bucks also set a record with the most different players making a three-pointer with 12, scoring 11 points, according to research from the Elias Sports Bureau. The Bucks were led by Jrue Holiday’s six baskets on 10 shots from three-point distance, followed by Donte DiVincenzo going 5-out-6.
• 9: Amidst all the pickups made by so many Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo was perhaps the biggest surprise to end the evening with just 9 points, even though he only played 24 minutes. The prevailing double MVP was the lone Milwaukee player who could not score a 3-point even though he tried two. The last time Antetokounmpo scored under double figures was December 22, 2018, also against the Heat in a road loss of 94-87.
• 1: Giannis did not make a 3, but his brother Thanasis scored his first three-point score, having previously shot 0-of-11 from outside the arc over his 23 career NBA games before Tuesday.
• 30 or bust? Bryn Forbes beat the 29th and final three-pointer by 3:30, so it was not as if the clock on Milwaukee’s rain of 3s ran out. But Forbes’ bucket was also Milwaukee’s last effort of the night.
• 47: Elias also notes that the Bucks’ 47-point victory over Heat was the third-biggest victory over a defending conference champion:
Biggest win over defending conference champion
December 1986, SuperSonics def. Rockets, plus-56
November 2019, Mavericks defeated. Warriors, plus-48
December 2020, Bucks def. Verhit, plus-47
December 2003, Grizzlies defeated. Nette, plus-47
April 1999, Magic def. Bulle, plus-47
Tuesday’s defeat was also the second-largest margin in Heat history, with a 47-point loss to the Lakers in November 1988, with only 68 points against the Cavaliers on December 17, 1991. The 144 Bucks points were also the second largest that Miami allowed in franchise history, and lagged only the 148 that Cleveland recorded in that game in 1991.
So what did the Heat do with all the bad news on the track and in the record book? The only thing they could do:
good night pic.twitter.com/FFAPkBRzwh
– Miami HEAT (@ MiamiHEAT) 30 December 2020