RotoWire — Jeff Edgerton

The final night of the regular season brought numerous playoff scenarios to the forefront, and the matchup between Bucks Gaming and Mavs Gaming would decide critical seeding for the postseason. Seeding for both teams could fluctuate between the fifth and eighth seed, depending on the outcome of the game. Fresh off a league-record 133 point win, Regg and the Bucks are red-hot, and the stage was set between two of the best guards in the game, Regg and Sherm. The Bucks dropped the first game but stormed back to take the series, 2-1

The Mavs battled to a 23-18 first-quarter lead. While the Mavs were making contested shots, their defense allowed a lot of wide-open looks for the Bucks, and it would catch up to them in the second quarter. The Bucks closed the gap to 33-30 at the half, but Sherm’s 18 first-half points were enough to keep the Mavs in control.

The Bucks’ full-court press was relentless, and they were finally able to wrestle the lead away from the Mavs in the third quarter. They headed into the final six minutes with a 50-45 lead. Despite Sherm being on a cold ring for most of the quarter, the Bucks allowed far too many points inside the paint, where the Mavs needed to go without Sherm’s pure shot. The Bucks had a chance to send the game into overtime, but they couldn’t get the shot to fall, and the Mavs took Game 1, 62-60. Sherm led the Mavs with 24 points and seven assists.

The Bucks unleashed a three-point barrage to take an early lead in Game 2. Coupled with top-notch defense, they took a 22-12 lead into the second quarter. The Mavs have had to weather some cold rings from Sherm, and he found himself on another one in the second quarter. Luckily for the Mavs, Dimez stepped up in a big way with 21 points in the first half. The Mavs shot the ball well over the first 12 minutes, but their 10 turnovers didn’t help their cause. The Bucks were in control with a 41-27 lead at the half.

The Bucks kept on rolling in the second half, Sherm continued to struggle in the third quarter and had already racked up seven turnovers with six minutes to go. With a 19-point lead going into the final frame, it looked like the Bucks were forcing a Game 3. They ultimately cruised to a 79-58 victory. Regg paced the Bucks with 31 points and nine assists.

It was deja vu for the Bucks in Game 3, as they once again jumped out to a big lead in the first quarter. It was a rough five quarters for the Mavs, and they trailed the Bucks 24.15. Arooks started hot with three drained threes in the first frame. Behind Regg’s 16 points, the Bucks went to the half holding a 40-29 lead. Both Regg and Arooks were sizzling from beyond the arc in this game, and with six minutes left, they had already drained 13 treys compared to only six for the Mavs. With six minutes remaining, the Bucks held a 59-45 lead. The Mavs were able to cut the deficit to eight points, but that was as far as they got, and the Bucks win the series 3-1 with a final score of 81-72.

With the victory, the Bucks nail down the sixth seed in the playoffs, and the Mavs grab the seventh seed.