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(Reuters) – Jimmy Butler scored two free throws with no time remaining on the clock Wednesday night, culminating a wild finale that featured two controversial umpire decisions and gave the fifth-seeded Miami Heat a second straight win over the Milwaukee Bucks, the first classified by 116-. 114 in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals at the Walt Disney World Complex near Orlando.
After notching a 115-104 win in Game 1, the Heat appeared to be in command Wednesday with a 113-107 lead with less than 20 seconds to go.
Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo then threw a dunk, and Brook Lopez stole Butler’s pass inside the field, converting a layup that cut the gap to two with 8.5 seconds left.
After Butler made just one of two free throws for a 114-111 lead with 7.7 seconds left, Goran Dragic was called for a debated foul on a 3-point attempt by Khris Middleton. When Middleton made his three free kicks, the game was surprisingly tied with 4.3 seconds left.
That was enough time for Butler to benefit from a similar touch foul at the other end on a corner kick that went down just before the horn. Antetokounmpo received a whistle for putting a hand on Butler’s hip during the follow-up, setting up the game-winning free throws.
On a night when Butler followed a 40-point blast with just 13, the Heat used a 51-21 lead in 3-point scoring to put the Bucks in a big hole.
After losing as many as 13 in the first half and 10 in the final period, the Bucks came close 105-102 on a short shot from Antetokounmpo with 5:30 left.
But Kelly Olynyk responded immediately with her third triple of the game to double the margin, and then the Heat defense took over.
The Bucks didn’t score again until Antetokounmpo hit two free throws with 1:45 remaining, bringing the deficit to 111-104. The nearly four-minute drought included five missed shots and three turnovers.
Dragic scored 23 points and Tyler Herro added 17 points for Miami. Jae Crowder had 16, Bam Adebayo had 15 to finish with nine rebounds, Duncan Robinson 13 and Olynyk 11.
Butler also found time for six assists and three steals, the team’s highest, as the Heat forced 14 turnovers and only committed 10.
Antetokounmpo finished with a game-high 29 points and a game-high 14 rebounds, after being limited to 18 points and 10 rebounds in Game 1.
Middleton contributed 23 points and eight assists. Eric Bledsoe and Lopez added 16 points each and George Hill 14 for the Bucks, who were 7 of 25 on 3-point attempts (28 percent) versus 17 of 45 for the Heat (37.8 percent).
Building on the momentum from their Game 1 win, the Heat shot five 3s, including two from Olynyk, in the first quarter, building an 11-point lead.
The margin reached 13 in the second period before the Bucks scratched.
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