with their dismantling at the hands of H2K Gaming standing as a potential beginning of the end for Fabian

MILWAUKEE -- Milwaukee Bucks head coach Jason Kidd needed plenty of superlatives to describe Thursday nights victory.Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker had 27 points each to lead the Bucks past the Indiana Pacers 125-107.You could see right off the bat they were ready, Kidd said of the dynamic duo. They took good shots. They shared the ball. If they had an open shot, they took it. If not, they got off of it. They made good, quick decisions. When you do that, youre going to score a lot of points.Kidd has turned the offense over to Antetokounmpo, and the 6-foot-11, 222-pound guard has responded. He had nine assists and seven rebounds and his running mate, Parker, made a career-high four 3-pointers and grabbed eight rebounds.Kidd also got production out of Greg Monroe, who added 16 points, 16 rebounds and six assists, and Tony Snell, the newcomer acquired from the Chicago Bulls for Michael Carter-Williams, had 14 points, including a 3 at the buzzer that gave Milwaukee a 63-57 lead at halftime.Everybody was great, Kidd said. Everybody who participated did their job and stayed in character. It was a great team win against a talented, well-coached team.Paul George scored 23 points, reserve C.J. Miles added 19, Jeff Teague had 16 and Myles Turner 15, but it wasnt enough as the Pacers slipped to 0-3 on the road.When Parker hit from in close and then from beyond the arc to open the fourth quarter, it looked like the Bucks would coast to their third win of the season.Indiana had other ideas and closed with a flurry led by George who hit a 3-pointer with 9:28 to go, cutting the deficit to 95-82. When Turner made two free throws and Thaddeus Young hit a basket, the Bucks lead was nine.After a steal by Monta Ellis who dished to George for another basket, the Pacers trailed by seven with 4:11 to play, but that was as close as they got. Snell hit a 3-pointer, Miles Plumlee dunked and Antetokounmpo scored in traffic to push the lead to 14 points and the Bucks regained control of the game.George was not happy with the outcome, despite coming close down the stretch.Im real frustrated, he said. I know how good we could be. I know how good we were. Were nowhere close to it. Its embarrassing the way were playing and we look on the floor right now.Miles agreed with his teammates assessment.Were not tied together, man, he said. You can see it. You can see it. Were not showing no spirit, no heart. You dont see guys getting excited about anything.Parker sparked the Bucks with nine points as Milwaukee opened the third quarter with some energy, attacked the boards on both ends and pulled away to a 74-61 lead. Parker hit a 3, two driving dunks and a putback before George stopped the surge with a wide-open 3-pointer with 7:03 left in the quarter. But the Bucks were off and running again, building the lead to as many as 17.You look at what Jabari did tonight, catch-and-shoot, making plays for his teammates, Kidd said. He scored. He made the extra pass. Thats his game. Hes the total package.Malcom Brogdon, the Bucks second-round draft pick from Virginia, scored 12 points, including two free throws that pushed the margin to 90-73 with seconds left in the third.TIP-INSPacers: G Rodney Stuckey missed his third consecutive game with a right hamstring strain. ... The Pacers took three of four from the Bucks last season. Indianas 37-point win on Nov. 21 was the Pacers largest win and Milwaukees largest loss in 2015-16.Bucks: Coming into Thursdays game, Antetokounmpo is the only NBA player averaging over 23 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocks per game. ... F Steve Novak has yet to play in a game.WE OWN THE PAINTThe Bucks came into the game tied with Oklahoma City for second in the NBA in points in the paint (53.5) behind only the Washington Wizards (56.7). Milwaukee recorded 62 points in the paint against the Pacers who had 42.NOT VERY PRETTYThe Pacers had 21 turnovers which the Bucks turned into 34 points. Milwaukee returned the favor by making 22 miscues which Indiana converted into 26 points.UP NEXTPacers: On Saturday, they look for payback against the Bulls who beat them 118-101 on Oct. 29 in Chicago.Bucks: On Saturday, they host the Sacramento Kings who took the two-game series last season. Josh Phegley Jersey . Defenceman Yannick Weber scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period and the Canucks breathed a sigh of relief with a 2-1 win on Saturday night. Liam Hendriks Athletics Jersey . Traditional contenders Brazil, Greece and Turkey drew the other three spots to complete the 24-team field for this summers tournament in Spain, basketball governing body FIBA announced Saturday at its meeting in Barcelona. https://www.cheapathleticsonline.com/2605m-jed-lowrie-jersey-athletics.html .J. -- Marshawn Lynch said Thursday it will be good to get back to football after the Seattle quiet talking running back wrapped up his final mandatory media session of Super Bowl week. Joe Morgan Athletics Jersey . Thousands of Southern California fans enveloped the Trojans to celebrate an improbable win secured by an interim coach, an inconsistent kicker and a thin defence that wouldnt break. Khris Davis Athletics Jersey . -- Ty Montgomery had 290 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns, and fifth-ranked Stanford held on to beat No. The European League Championship Series Regional Qualifier, also known as the Gauntlet, has seen teams rise up to the occasion on the way to an otherwise inaccessible World Championship berth (look no further than North Americas Cloud9 in 2015) or to a momentous performance (Origens semifinal placement). As the two aforementioned squads showed, the last-chance qualifier can be a thrilling experience.As we explore the 2016 European Regional tournament, we can only note that the same may be happening all over again. Returning this year are Unicorns of Loves Fabian Sheepy Mallant, Kiss Vizicsacsi Tamas and Zdravets Hylissang Iliev Galabov, as well as then-ROCCAT head coach Jakob YamatoCannon Mebdi, now the coach of Splyce.Splyce and the Unicorns of Love are not alone; Fnatic and Giants Gaming are also part of the festivities. How do the participants fare? And what would be their saving grace if their chances are low?Giants Gamings odds: Winning the lotto three times in a rowWhen Giants were a functional crew, they dodged their laning phase shortcomings and systematically swapped lanes to occupy half of their opponents jungle, allowing them to capitalize on pick opportunities. That is, unless Lennart Smittyj Warkus or Na NighT Gun-woo spiraled out of control following a gank from their jungler, Nubar Maxlore Sarafian.Were because they have devolved from the group that had had a surprising showing during the season to overaggressive (or downright desperate) playmakers during the playoffs, but matters may have turned beyond sour for the Spanish organization, at least according to a recent tweet from the squads head coach, David LoZarK Alonso Vicente.Regarding all this soap drama: we are having internal problems within the group leading us to not scrimming these days.— David Alonso Vicente (@Lozarklol) September 1, 2016Giants had an opportunity to learn from the mistakes of other teams during the playoffs, but team chemistry issues may lead to roster changes - a matter that would preoccupy the organization more than their chances of making it past the Unicorns of Love.Can an individual win the lotto reliably three times in a row? Possible, but very unlikely.Unicorns of Loves odds: The New York Knicks chances at going beyond the first round of the playoffs in 2016-2017One might think the Knicks? Making the playoffs? but theres a little more hope around the team considering their offseason moves, and a few more bench hires would solidify its status as a potential playoff team, bar injuries and chemistry issues. As such, I would say that the Unicorns of Loves chances at reaching the World Championships group stages are fair on paper.UoL has had one of the biggest surges in terms of power level since the release of the playoff patch, allowing new hires and veterans to showcase their abilities more reliably. Kiss Vizicsacsi Tamas remains a pillar within the squad, and protecting him would be a primary key for Kang Move Min-su. Fabian Exileh Schubert has also displayed improvement oover the season, culminating in a lights-out showing against Fnatic in the playoff quarterfinals.dddddddddddd.However, the deck may be stacked against UoL considering the lack of practice partners as Fnatic and Splyce canceled scrimmages against them. As Fnatic and Splyce currently withhold their decks in hand, the Unicorns may have to blindly all-in (although they currently carry the equivalent of a queen pair in hand). Their understanding of the meta and their ability to play accordingly has already allowed them to surprise G2 Esports and H2K Gaming despite 3-1 defeats.Fnatics odds: The same as the Miracle on Ice (or Cloud9s reverse-sweep run) happening ever againFnatic are in a desperate situation. Not only have they missed the auto-qualification scenarios of old, they had fallen from grace, away from the top of the LCS, with their dismantling at the hands of H2K Gaming standing as a potential beginning of the end for Fabian Febiven Diepstraten and his teammates. Without the ability to open the map and stall long enough in the bottom lane to survive during the laning phase or pull ahead through ganks, they seemed listless, a shell of glories past.Without perfect team chemistry, Fnatic may falter against the Unicorns of Love, who will be meeting them in the gauntlet semifinals lest Giants somehow manage to upset fate, distort the boundaries of time and space, and bend them to their will to avert UoLs impending victory.But they have an unlikely ally in their quest for a deeper gauntlet run: LCS summer finalists Splyce. Will Mateusz Kikis Szkudlarek morph into something greater than Martin Wunder Hansen? Will Lee Spirit Da-yoon make the right early-game calls and allow Bora YellOwStaR Kim to dictate the shots for the remainder of the game? Will YellOwStaR himself recapture his 2015 shape? Too many parameters, especially against Splyce (or against the decisive Unicorns of Love).Splyces odds at NOT making it: You rolling nat20 five times in a row, right now.Far-fetched, isnt it? But this is Splyces position. As the last team to enter the gauntlet, they have the luxury to observe the hand their opponents play, and how they play them. In addition, their team play has been consistently better than all teams not named G2 Esports this summer. The sole team with more chances to upset Splyce (other than Kikis and Spirit turning into Huni and Reignover) is UoL, who have no scrimmages planned against them.Of course, their record against UoL during the regular season (1W-2L, lets omit the Sion support game) may have been a cause for concern had the meta not evolved, but the meta did, in fact, evolve. With lane matchups becoming more important, they can create advantageous situations during the draft for their solo laners, with Exilehs champion pool posing a problem.By the way, if you did roll five nat20s in a row, I would require proof, if only for fun. ' ' '