MILWAUKEE – Giannis Antetokounmpo insisted that Milwaukee’s season had not been a failure after the Bucks crashed out of the National Basketball Association (NBA) Eastern Conference play-offs at the first hurdle.

The top-seeded Bucks were bundled out of the best-of-seven series 4-1 in stunning fashion, losing 128-126 to the Miami Heat in overtime in front of their home crowd at Milwaukee’s Fiserv Forum on Wednesday.

For the second straight game, they collapsed in the fourth quarter, squandering a large double-digit lead as a Jimmy Butler-inspired Miami stormed to victory.

The normally unflappable Antetokounmpo embodied Milwaukee’s implosion, making just 10 of 23 free throws to let the Heat off the hook.

“I wasn’t able to make shots. That’s pretty much it,” said the disconsolate Greek star, who led his team with 38 points and 20 rebounds nonetheless.

“If I’d made those shots, it would have been a different case... Some days you make it, some days you miss. Today was one of those days.”

But the forward – one of the front runners for the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award – bristled when asked if he felt Milwaukee’s season had been a failure.

“There’s no failure in sports. There’s good days, bad days. Some days you’re able to be successful, some days you’re not. Some days it’s your turn, and some days it’s not your turn. You don’t always win. And this year some other team is going to win,” he said.

“Every year, you work towards a goal. There are steps to success. Michael Jordan played 15 years and won six championships. Were the other nine years a failure?”

However, he acknowledged that the sting of defeat would haunt him through the off-season, revealing that he would likely “think about it all summer”.

“Everybody handles it differently. But for me I’ll remember it, and that I don’t want to be in this situation again. But it’s basketball, so I probably will be in this situation again,” he added.

Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer also declined to characterise Milwaukee’s season as a failure, even after they led the entire league 58-24 in the regular season.

“This team has incredibly high expectations,” he said.

“(General manager) Jon Horst has put together an amazing roster – the ownership’s done what they’re supposed to do.

“We made a push. We’re the No. 1 seeds. But all that matters is the play-offs. We’re just disappointed. I would not use that word (failure).

“We’re disappointed, we’re frustrated, it hurts. But I’ve said it all year – we love this team, we love these guys, we believe in them. We didn’t get it done tonight.”

Butler once again conjured another magical performance with 42 points, which came after his 56 in the Game 4 win.

It was only the sixth time in NBA history that an eighth-seeded team have eliminated a No. 1 seed from the play-offs.

“Whatever it takes to win – it could be 40 (points), it could be 50, I gotta be able to do it all,” Butler said. “We were resilient, we were down late – it’s seemed to be that way a lot during this series – but we stayed with it, got some stops, made some huge buckets.”

Also in the Eastern Conference, Jalen Brunson scored 23 points and the New York Knicks advanced past the opening round of the play-offs for the first time since 2013, closing out the Cleveland Cavaliers on the road with a 106-95 victory and a 4-1 series triumph.

Fifth-seeded New York never trailed and built an advantage of as many as 18 points, flexing their defensive muscle and dominance on the glass.

The Knicks held the Cavaliers to fewer than 100 points for the fourth time in the series, and they won all of those games.

New York will next take on the Heat in the semi-finals on Sunday. AFP, REUTERS