Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) throws down a dunk as Orlando Magic center Nikola Vucevic (L) and Magic forward Wes Iwundu (R) look on during the second half in Game 4 on Monday at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando, Fla. Photo by John G. Mabanglo/EPA-EFE
Aug. 24 (UPI) -- The fifth-seeded Miami Heat completed their first-round sweep of the Indiana Pacers with a 99-87 win Monday night, while the Milwaukee Bucks and Oklahoma City Thunder both posted victories in their first-round series.
Miami guard Goran Dragic had a team-best 23 points to go with five rebounds and three assists. Tyler Herro had 16 points and Bam Adebayo notched 14 points, 19 rebounds and six assists for the Heat, who advanced to the second round of the NBA playoffs for the first time since 2016.
Victor Oladipo led Indiana with 25 points and five steals. Myles Turner recorded 22 points and 14 rebounds and T.J. Warren added 21 points on 8-of-17 shooting for the Pacers, who have now lost four consecutive postseason series to the Heat since 2012.
The Heat will play either the Orlando Magic or the Bucks in the second round.
The top-seeded Bucks dropped the series opener to the Magic but have won three straight games to take a 3-1 series lead. Milwaukee posted a dominant 121-106 win over Orlando on Monday to inch closer to the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Milwaukee star Giannis Antetokounmpo finished with 31 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists. Khris Middleton scored 18 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter and brought down 10 rebounds for the Bucks, who are hoping to win their first NBA championship since 1971.
Magic big man Nikola Vucevic continued his red-hot play against the Bucks, recording 31 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. Terrence Ross had 19 points and eight rebounds in 31 minutes off the bench.
The Bucks can close out the Magic on Wednesday in Game 5.
Meanwhile, the Thunder rallied from a 15-point deficit to beat the Houston Rockets 117-114 on Monday, evening their first-round Western Conference playoff series at two games apiece.
Oklahoma City guard Dennis Schroder scored a career playoff-high 30 points to lead his team over the Rockets. Chris Paul had 26 points and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander notched 18 points and 12 rebounds for the Thunder, who managed to tie the series despite giving up 23 3-pointers.
Rockets star James Harden recorded 32 points, 15 assists and eight rebounds. Eric Gordon scored 23 points and Danuel House Jr. added 21 for Houston.
Game 5 of the best-of-seven series is set for Wednesday.
