Pacers aim to sweep back-to-back with Bucks

Milwaukee and Indiana meet for the second time in as many games on Wednesday when the Bucks visit the Pacers in Indianapolis.

Indiana scored its third defeat of the Bucks this season, and took a 2-1 edge in the regular-season series, with its 122-113 win in Milwaukee on Monday. Tyrese Haliburton flirted with a triple-double, going for 26 points and 11 assists with nine rebounds, while Bennedict Mathurin came off the bench for 25 points and a career-best 13 rebounds.

Mathurin led a contingent of four Pacers reserves to score in double figures. Isaiah Jackson added 18 points and nine rebounds, T.J. McConnell finished with 16 points and nine assists and Obi Toppin scored 11 points.

"We have a lot of depth on the team," Mathurin told reporters afterward. "It was fun just seeing the guys taking turns on impacting the game."

The 122 points Indiana scored fell short of the Pacers' NBA-leading offensive output of 126.4 points per game, but the 113 points to which Indiana held Milwaukee were the Bucks' fewest since Nov. 30.

Milwaukee's 124.6 points scored per game rank second in the NBA behind only Indiana. The Bucks scored 140 points in one win over the Pacers this season, a 14-point decision on Dec. 13, but have posted less than their average in all three losses (including a defeat in the in-season tournament semifinals) and an overall average of 118.7 points in those contests.

That yield is well below Indiana's season-long defensive allowance of 124.4 points per game, second-most in the league.

Giannis Antetokounmpo recorded a triple-double in Monday's loss with 30 points, 18 rebounds and 11 assists. He led all five Milwaukee starters in double-figure scoring, including Brook Lopez and Khris Middleton each with 21 points.

Indiana limited Damian Lillard to 13 points on 3-of-16 shooting, marking the third time in as many games the seven-time All-NBA honoree has faced the Pacers and scored less than his 25.5-point per game season average.

He went for 21 points in the Dec. 13 win, and 24 points in a 128-119 loss in the Dec. 7 in-season tournament semifinals.

Lillard has scored fewer than 20 points in three of Milwaukee's last five outings, with 19 points on Dec. 23 at New York and 12 points on Dec. 27 at Brooklyn, though those both came in Bucks blowout wins.

Antetokounmpo, meanwhile, is averaging 46.3 points in four matchups against Indiana. He scored 54 points in the 126-124 Pacers win on Nov. 9 and a career-high 64 points in the Dec. 13 Milwaukee win.

"At the end of the day, this makes us better," Antetokounmpo said postgame Monday.

The 30 points he scored were the fewest in his meetings with Indiana this season.

"We've got to go watch the tapes, figure out what they do well against us and stop it," he said. "If we cannot stop it, then we'll probably lose again."

Losses to the Pacers with the in-season tournament semifinal and Monday's contest book-ended a run in which Milwaukee won nine of 10 games.