Khris Middleton

Without their top two scorers for the second consecutive game, the Bucks leaned on Middleton's veteran experience and Beverley's playmaking.

From Bobby Portis' ejection to disorganized transition defense, the already short-handed Bucks find themselves down 3-1 to the Pacers.

“They threw everything at us," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said following Indiana's win in Game 4.

The Bucks' three best players are nursing injuries and two, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard are listed as doubtful for Game 4.

Middleton was not 100 percent, but he got on the floor because he knew the team needed him to have a chance in Game 3 without Giannis.

Lillard's 35 first-half points stunned the Pacers and helped the Bucks take the series opener. "He's got that prizefighter-like mentality."

When they've been without their two-time MVP, Lillard and Middleton have had their good moments. It's the awful ones they need to avoid.

Indiana was the NBA's highest-scoring regular-season team ... and the numbers went up even more against Milwaukee.

The last seven-plus minutes of the second quarter in Orlando were an example of Milwaukee's up-and-down season.

Because of their loss to the Thunder, the Bucks can finish anywhere between the No. 2 seed and the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Antetokounmpo has a history of quickly returning from injuries that would sideline most. That doesn't change the Bucks' uncertain position.

"Sometimes you have hard times. And I think that's what it is for us," Damian Lillard said after Milwaukee's loss to New York.

After a third-straight loss to a sub-.500 team, the Bucks are trying to right the ship and rediscover some excitement.

Are these Bucks ready for a deep postseason run? A road loss to the lowly Wizards shows they have some convincing to do.

Three years ago, when Antetokounmpo was injured against the Hawks, Middleton and Lopez stepped up. On Saturday, they were big again.

With less than three-and-a-half minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Bucks led the Lakers by 10 points. Things fell apart from there.

Short-handed Milwaukee's margin for error was slim Wednesday, and those early miscues led to defeat.

Lillard put up the first 30-point, 15-assist game in Bucks history as Khris Middleton returned and Bobby Portis cooked with 31 points.