The Bucks came back to pull off a 120-112 victory, outscoring the Pacers 56-29 in the final 19 minutes of the game. Asked after the game why his team kept fighting, Antetokounmpo gave a one-word response, “Doc.” He then elaborated on Coach Rivers’ influence. “Doc,” Antetokounmpo said. “Doc. He said the same thing he said in Brooklyn. Gotta fight through this one. Just gotta fight through this one. Keep on fighting through this one. They’re going to let us back in the game. And like, when a coach says that and then you start fighting and you see it goes from 19 to 15. And then it goes to 11. And then it goes to seven. And then it goes … it just keeps giving you that dopamine hit. “And you’re like, ‘OK, fight a little bit more. Fight a little bit more.’ And all of a sudden, you look up, and it’s a tie game. And now, when you’re there, you’re like, ‘We should just win the game. We’re already here. We should just play a little bit more hard. Two, three more minutes, play good team basketball and win the game.’ And that’s what we did.” -via New York Times / January 1, 2025
