1971 NBA playoffs
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | March 24–April 30, 1971 |
| Season | 1970–71 |
| Teams | 8 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Milwaukee Bucks(1st title) |
| Runner-up | Baltimore Bullets |
| Semifinalists | |
The1971 NBA playoffswas the postseason tournament of theNational Basketball Association's1970–71 season.The tournament concluded with theWestern ConferencechampionMilwaukee Bucksdefeating theEastern ConferencechampionBaltimore Bulletsfour games to none in theNBA Finals.
Led by Finals MVP and the previous season's Rookie of the YearLew AlcindorandOscar Robertson,the Bucks became the fastest expansion team in NBA history to win the championship (a record that they still hold as of 2021), and did so in dominating fashion, finishing 12-2 in the playoffs with a postseason average point differential of 14.5.[1]
The playoff format kept the amount of teams qualifying the same, albeit with a different format from the two-division format, since there were now four divisions rather than two, with each division qualifying its champion and second-place team (as opposed to having the top four from the Eastern and Western). In the Conference Semifinals, the champion of each division played the second place team in the other, with the divisional champion having home-court advantage. The two winners then played for the conference championship.
This was the first NBA Finals appearance for the Bullets, and their only trip to the championship round in Baltimore; they made three more appearances (winning one title) later in the decade.
The 1971 playoffs was the last for theSan Francisco Warriorsunder that moniker; the following season, symbolizing their already-established home base of Oakland, they changed their name to the Golden State Warriors.
Bracket
[edit]| Conference Semifinals | Conference Finals | NBA Finals | ||||||||||||
| A1 | New York* | 4 | ||||||||||||
| C2 | Atlanta | 1 | ||||||||||||
| A1 | New York* | 3 | ||||||||||||
| Eastern Conference | ||||||||||||||
| C1 | Baltimore* | 4 | ||||||||||||
| C1 | Baltimore* | 4 | ||||||||||||
| A2 | Philadelphia | 3 | ||||||||||||
| C1 | Baltimore* | 0 | ||||||||||||
| M1 | Milwaukee* | 4 | ||||||||||||
| M1 | Milwaukee* | 4 | ||||||||||||
| P2 | San Francisco | 1 | ||||||||||||
| M1 | Milwaukee* | 4 | ||||||||||||
| Western Conference | ||||||||||||||
| P1 | Los Angeles* | 1 | ||||||||||||
| P1 | Los Angeles* | 4 | ||||||||||||
| M2 | Chicago | 3 | ||||||||||||
- * Division winner
- BoldSeries winner
- ItalicTeam with home-court advantage
Conference semifinals
[edit]Eastern Conference semifinals
[edit](A1)New York Knicksvs. (C2)Atlanta Hawks
[edit]March 25
|
| Atlanta Hawks101,New York Knicks112 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:22–32,26–22,32–21, 21–37 | ||
| Pts:Pete Maravich23 Rebs:Bill Bridges13 Asts:Hazzard,Maravich5 each |
Pts:Bill Bradley25 Rebs:Willis Reed22 Asts:Bill Bradley4 | |
| New York leads series, 1–0 | ||
March 27
|
| Atlanta Hawks113,New York Knicks104 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:14–26,35–30,33–23,31–25 | ||
| Pts:Lou Hudson35 Rebs:Bill Bridges36 Asts:Pete Maravich5 |
Pts:Walt Frazier29 Rebs:Dave DeBusschere15 Asts:Bill Bradley4 | |
| Series tied, 1–1 | ||
March 28
|
| New York Knicks110,Atlanta Hawks95 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:24–27,23–27,37–23,26–18 | ||
| Pts:Willis Reed26 Rebs:Dave DeBusschere17 Asts:Walt Frazier9 |
Pts:Walt Bellamy29 Rebs:Walt Bellamy18 Asts:Walt Hazzard7 | |
| New York leads series, 2–1 | ||
March 30
|
| New York Knicks113,Atlanta Hawks107 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:32–28,31–29, 27–29,23–21 | ||
| Pts:Walt Frazier26 Rebs:Dave DeBusschere13 Asts:Walt Frazier8 |
Pts:Walt Bellamy25 Rebs:Bill Bridges18 Asts:Walt Hazzard9 | |
| New York leads series, 3–1 | ||
April 1
|
| Atlanta Hawks107,New York Knicks111 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:28–25,29–25,28–25, 22–33 | ||
| Pts:Lou Hudson29 Rebs:Bellamy,Bridges20 each Asts:Walt Bellamy5 |
Pts:Dave DeBusschere29 Rebs:Dave DeBusschere22 Asts:Willis Reed5 | |
| New York wins series, 4–1 | ||
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.[2]
(C1)Baltimore Bulletsvs. (A2)Philadelphia 76ers
[edit]March 24
|
| Philadelphia 76ers126,Baltimore Bullets112 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:28–28, 27–28,35–21,36–35 | ||
| Pts:Hal Greer30 Rebs:Luke Jackson13 Asts:Archie Clark7 |
Pts:Loughery,Gus Johnson19 Rebs:Wes Unseld20 Asts:Kevin Loughery4 | |
| Philadelphia leads series, 1–0 | ||
March 26
|
| Baltimore Bullets119,Philadelphia 76ers107 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:36–29, 32–32,24–17, 27–29 | ||
| Pts:Marin,Monroe24 each Rebs:Wes Unseld18 Asts:Earl Monroe6 |
Pts:Archie Clark26 Rebs:Billy Cunningham11 Asts:Archie Clark6 | |
| Series tied, 1–1 | ||
March 28
|
| Philadelphia 76ers103,Baltimore Bullets111 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:25–27,22–25,29–28, 27–31 | ||
| Pts:Hal Greer28 Rebs:Billy Cunningham19 Asts:Billy Cunningham10 |
Pts:Earl Monroe29 Rebs:Wes Unseld24 Asts:Kevin Loughery7 | |
| Baltimore leads series, 2–1 | ||
March 30
|
| Baltimore Bullets120,Philadelphia 76ers105 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:30–32,32–30,27–19,31–24 | ||
| Pts:Jack Marin27 Rebs:Gus Johnson14 Asts:Earl Monroe6 |
Pts:Archie Clark24 Rebs:Billy Cunningham17 Asts:Billy Cunningham8 | |
| Baltimore leads series, 3–1 | ||
April 1
|
| Philadelphia 76ers104,Baltimore Bullets103 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:28–18,30–24, 26–29,20–32 | ||
| Pts:Billy Cunningham32 Rebs:Billy Cunningham20 Asts:Hal Greer6 |
Pts:Earl Monroe26 Rebs:Wes Unseld18 Asts:Kevin Loughery5 | |
| Baltimore leads series, 3–2 | ||
April 3
|
| Baltimore Bullets94,Philadelphia 76ers98 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:16–30,24–25,34–20, 20–23 | ||
| Pts:Earl Monroe30 Rebs:Wes Unseld18 Asts:Kevin Loughery5 |
Pts:Billy Cunningham33 Rebs:Billy Cunningham16 Asts:Billy Cunningham5 | |
| Series tied, 3–3 | ||
April 4
|
| Philadelphia 76ers120,Baltimore Bullets128 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:30–31,22–43,27–25,41–29 | ||
| Pts:Archie Clark37 Rebs:Billy Cunningham19 Asts:Clark,Greer5 each |
Pts:Jack Marin33 Rebs:Wes Unseld22 Asts:Gus Johnson8 | |
| Baltimore wins series, 4–3 | ||
- Bailey Howell's final NBA game.
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.[3]
Western Conference semifinals
[edit](M1)Milwaukee Bucksvs. (P2)San Francisco Warriors
[edit]March 27
|
| Milwaukee Bucks107,San Francisco Warriors96 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:34–24, 24–28,23–24,26–20 | ||
| Pts:Oscar Robertson31 Rebs:Abdul-Jabbar,Smith10 each Asts:Oscar Robertson9 |
Pts:Jeff Mullins30 Rebs:Nate Thurmond15 Asts:Jeff Mullins7 | |
| Milwaukee leads series, 1–0 | ||
March 29
|
| San Francisco Warriors90,Milwaukee Bucks104 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:20–25,24–18, 16–29,30–32 | ||
| Pts:Nate Thurmond18 Rebs:Clyde Lee13 Asts:Mullins,Williams4 each |
Pts:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar26 Rebs:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar18 Asts:Oscar Robertson7 | |
| Milwaukee leads series, 2–0 | ||
March 30
|
| San Francisco Warriors102,Milwaukee Bucks114 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:22–24,20–31,36–31, 24–28 | ||
| Pts:Jerry Lucas25 Rebs:Jerry Lucas20 Asts:Ron Williams8 |
Pts:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar33 Rebs:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar12 Asts:Lucius Allen8 | |
| Milwaukee leads series, 3–0 | ||
April 1
|
| Milwaukee Bucks104,San Francisco Warriors106 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:24–19, 20–34,25–25,35–28 | ||
| Pts:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar32 Rebs:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar21 Asts:Lucius Allen6 |
Pts:Jerry Lucas32 Rebs:Jeff Mullins19 Asts:Ron Williams9 | |
| Milwaukee leads series, 3–1 | ||
April 4
|
| San Francisco Warriors86,Milwaukee Bucks136 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:18–38,17–31,22–36,29–31 | ||
| Pts:Ron Williams13 Rebs:Clyde Lee11 Asts:Mullins,Williams4 each |
Pts:Jon McGlocklin28 Rebs:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar17 Asts:Lucius Allen7 | |
| Milwaukee wins series, 4–1 | ||
- All three Milwaukee home games in the series were not played atMilwaukee Arenadue to scheduling conflicts.
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.[4]
(P1)Los Angeles Lakersvs. (M2)Chicago Bulls
[edit]March 24
|
| Chicago Bulls99,Los Angeles Lakers100 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:25–20,29–19, 20–30,25–31 | ||
| Pts:Bob Love24 Rebs:Sloan,Boerwinkle9 each Asts:Tom Boerwinkle8 |
Pts:Jim McMillian26 Rebs:Wilt Chamberlain21 Asts:Gail Goodrich11 | |
| Los Angeles leads series, 1–0 | ||
March 26
|
| Chicago Bulls95,Los Angeles Lakers105 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:14–19,29–24,33–29, 19–33 | ||
| Pts:Bob Love34 Rebs:Jim Fox13 Asts:Bob Weiss5 |
Pts:Gail Goodrich29 Rebs:Wilt Chamberlain20 Asts:Gail Goodrich7 | |
| Los Angeles leads series, 2–0 | ||
March 28
|
| Los Angeles Lakers98,Chicago Bulls106 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:26–24, 25–27,26–22, 21–33 | ||
| Pts:Gail Goodrich39 Rebs:Wilt Chamberlain18 Asts:Goodrich,Chamberlain6 each |
Pts:Bob Love27 Rebs:Chet Walker12 Asts:Bob Weiss11 | |
| Los Angeles leads series, 2–1 | ||
Chicago Stadium,Chicago,Illinois
Attendance:10,101 Referees:Mendy Rudolph, Bob Rakel, Allan Brunkhorst |
March 30
|
| Los Angeles Lakers102,Chicago Bulls112 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:29–22, 22–30,32–26, 19–34 | ||
| Pts:Gail Goodrich32 Rebs:Wilt Chamberlain23 Asts:Wilt Chamberlain7 |
Pts:Bob Love36 Rebs:Jerry Sloan12 Asts:Bob Weiss13 | |
| Series tied, 2–2 | ||
April 1
|
| Chicago Bulls89,Los Angeles Lakers115 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:23–27,31–28, 20–31,15–29 | ||
| Pts:Bob Love21 Rebs:Jim Fox11 Asts:Weiss,King7 each |
Pts:Gail Goodrich33 Rebs:Wilt Chamberlain14 Asts:Gail Goodrich11 | |
| Los Angeles leads series, 3–2 | ||
April 4
|
| Los Angeles Lakers99,Chicago Bulls113 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:30–29,27–23, 15–28,27–33 | ||
| Pts:Gail Goodrich25 Rebs:Wilt Chamberlain33 Asts:Wilt Chamberlain9 |
Pts:Bob Weiss25 Rebs:Tom Boerwinkle18 Asts:Boerwinkle,Walker6 each | |
| Series tied, 3–3 | ||
April 6
|
| Chicago Bulls98,Los Angeles Lakers109 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:25–30,23–22,26–25, 24–32 | ||
| Pts:Sloan,Love24 each Rebs:Jim Fox12 Asts:Bob Weiss8 |
Pts:Gail Goodrich29 Rebs:Wilt Chamberlain19 Asts:Goodrich,Chamberlain9 each | |
| Los Angeles wins series, 4–3 | ||
This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Lakers winning the first meeting.
| Los Angeles leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series |
|---|
Conference finals
[edit]Eastern Conference finals
[edit](A1)New York Knicksvs. (C1)Baltimore Bullets
[edit]April 6
|
| Baltimore Bullets111,New York Knicks112 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:28–30,25–28,34–28, 24–26 | ||
| Pts:Earl Monroe29 Rebs:Wes Unseld22 Asts:Earl Monroe4 |
Pts:Walt Frazier24 Rebs:Dave DeBusschere17 Asts:Walt Frazier7 | |
| New York leads series, 1–0 | ||
April 9
|
| Baltimore Bullets88,New York Knicks107 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:23–21, 25–27,15–25,25–34 | ||
| Pts:John Tresvant20 Rebs:Wes Unseld20 Asts:Kevin Loughery16 |
Pts:Dick Barnett14 Rebs:Dave DeBusschere14 Asts:Walt Frazier5 | |
| New York leads series, 2–0 | ||
April 11
|
| New York Knicks88,Baltimore Bullets114 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:26–25, 19–32,18–31,25–26 | ||
| Pts:Walt Frazier17 Rebs:Willis Reed10 Asts:Barnett,Bradley5 each |
Pts:Earl Monroe31 Rebs:Wes Unseld26 Asts:Wes Unseld9 | |
| New York leads series, 2–1 | ||
April 14
|
| New York Knicks80,Baltimore Bullets101 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:19–22,24–29,22–25,15–25 | ||
| Pts:Walt Frazier16 Rebs:Dave DeBusschere9 Asts:Walt Frazier5 |
Pts:Jack Marin27 Rebs:John Tresvant17 Asts:Wes Unseld6 | |
| Series tied, 2–2 | ||
April 16
|
| Baltimore Bullets84,New York Knicks89 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:16–24,24–20, 22–26,22–19 | ||
| Pts:Jack Marin25 Rebs:John Tresvant17 Asts:Wes Unseld3 |
Pts:Walt Frazier28 Rebs:Dave DeBusschere17 Asts:Bill Bradley4 | |
| New York leads series, 3–2 | ||
April 18
|
| New York Knicks96,Baltimore Bullets113 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:18–27,25–29,28–34,25–23 | ||
| Pts:Dave DeBusschere24 Rebs:Dave DeBusschere10 Asts:Dick Barnett5 |
Pts:Earl Monroe27 Rebs:Wes Unseld15 Asts:Earl Monroe7 | |
| Series tied, 3–3 | ||
April 19
|
| Baltimore Bullets93,New York Knicks91 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:19–21,24–26,30–21, 20–23 | ||
| Pts:Earl Monroe26 Rebs:Wes Unseld20 Asts:Earl Monroe6 |
Pts:Dick Barnett26 Rebs:Willis Reed12 Asts:Walt Frazier4 | |
| Baltimore wins series, 4–3 | ||
- The Bullets become the second team after the Boston Celtics in the 1969 Finals to win Game 7 on the road after the home team won each of the first six games.
This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Knicks winning the first two meetings.
| New York leads 2–0 in all-time playoff series |
|---|
Western Conference finals
[edit](M1)Milwaukee Bucksvs. (P1)Los Angeles Lakers
[edit]April 9
|
| Los Angeles Lakers85,Milwaukee Bucks106 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:21–26,23–17, 22–29,19–34 | ||
| Pts:Wilt Chamberlain22 Rebs:Wilt Chamberlain20 Asts:Gail Goodrich7 |
Pts:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar32 Rebs:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar22 Asts:Oscar Robertson10 | |
| Milwaukee leads series, 1–0 | ||
April 11
|
| Los Angeles Lakers73,Milwaukee Bucks91 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:15–24,22–20, 20–24,16–23 | ||
| Pts:Wilt Chamberlain26 Rebs:Wilt Chamberlain22 Asts:Gail Goodrich4 |
Pts:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar22 Rebs:Bob Dandridge11 Asts:Oscar Robertson7 | |
| Milwaukee leads series, 2–0 | ||
April 14
|
| Milwaukee Bucks107,Los Angeles Lakers118 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:27–28,28–28, 22–34,30–28 | ||
| Pts:Bob Dandridge25 Rebs:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar19 Asts:Oscar Robertson9 |
Pts:four players24 each Rebs:Wilt Chamberlain24 Asts:Gail Goodrich8 | |
| Milwaukee leads series, 2–1 | ||
April 16
|
| Milwaukee Bucks117,Los Angeles Lakers94 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:30–22,32–29,30–23,25–20 | ||
| Pts:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar31 Rebs:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar20 Asts:Oscar Robertson6 |
Pts:Gail Goodrich26 Rebs:Wilt Chamberlain16 Asts:Gail Goodrich11 | |
| Milwaukee leads series, 3–1 | ||
April 18
|
| Los Angeles Lakers98,Milwaukee Bucks116 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:29–30,20–25,17–26,32–35 | ||
| Pts:Happy Hairston27 Rebs:Wilt Chamberlain12 Asts:Gail Goodrich9 |
Pts:Greg Smith22 Rebs:Abdul-Jabbar,Dandridge15 each Asts:Oscar Robertson12 | |
| Milwaukee wins series, 4–1 | ||
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.[7]
NBA Finals: (M1) Milwaukee Bucks vs. (C1) Baltimore Bullets
[edit]April 21
|
| Baltimore Bullets88,Milwaukee Bucks98 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:22–28,20–22,26–29,20–19 | ||
| Pts:Earl Monroe26 Rebs:John Tresvant14 Asts:Fred Carter4 |
Pts:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar31 Rebs:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar17 Asts:Oscar Robertson7 | |
| Milwaukee leads series, 1–0 | ||
April 25
|
| Milwaukee Bucks102,Baltimore Bullets83 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:26–26,23–19,30–16,23–22 | ||
| Pts:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar27 Rebs:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar24 Asts:Oscar Robertson10 |
Pts:Jack Marin22 Rebs:Wes Unseld20 Asts:Earl Monroe6 | |
| Milwaukee leads series, 2–0 | ||
April 28
|
| Baltimore Bullets99,Milwaukee Bucks107 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:22–30,24–24, 23–25,30–28 | ||
| Pts:Jack Marin21 Rebs:Wes Unseld23 Asts:Wes Unseld6 |
Pts:Bob Dandridge29 Rebs:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar21 Asts:Oscar Robertson12 | |
| Milwaukee leads series, 3–0 | ||
April 30
|
| Milwaukee Bucks118,Baltimore Bullets106 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:31–22,29–25, 29–30,29–29 | ||
| Pts:Oscar Robertson30 Rebs:Abdul-Jabbar,Dandridge12 each Asts:Oscar Robertson9 |
Pts:Fred Carter28 Rebs:Wes Unseld23 Asts:Wes Unseld10 | |
| Milwaukee wins series, 4–0 | ||
- The Bucks win their first championship in only their third year of existence. This is also the last NBA Finals to date in which the series alternates in between the venues of the competing teams after every game as opposed to the customary 2–2–1–1–1 and 2–3–2 formats that have been used ever since (with the exception of1975and1978due to scheduling conflicts, which resulted in the use of a 1–2–2–1–1 format).
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.[8]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^1970–71 Milwaukee Bucks Games – Basketball-Reference.comArchived2011-08-04 at theWayback Machine
- ^"Team Rivalry Finder — Atlanta Hawks versus New York Knicks (Playoffs)".basketball-reference.com.RetrievedFebruary 19,2021.
- ^"Team Rivalry Finder — Philadelphia 76ers versus Washington Wizards (Playoffs)".basketball-reference.com.RetrievedFebruary 19,2021.
- ^"Team Rivalry Finder — Golden State Warriors versus Milwaukee Bucks (Playoffs)".basketball-reference.com.RetrievedFebruary 19,2021.
- ^"Team Rivalry Finder — Chicago Bulls versus Los Angeles Lakers (Playoffs)".basketball-reference.com.RetrievedFebruary 19,2021.
- ^"Team Rivalry Finder — New York Knicks versus Washington Wizards (Playoffs)".basketball-reference.com.RetrievedFebruary 19,2021.
- ^"Team Rivalry Finder — Los Angeles Lakers versus Milwaukee Bucks (Playoffs)".basketball-reference.com.RetrievedFebruary 19,2021.
- ^"Team Rivalry Finder — Milwaukee Bucks versus Washington Wizards (Playoffs)".basketball-reference.com.RetrievedFebruary 19,2021.
External links
[edit]- 1971 NBA PlayoffsBasketball-Reference.com
- April 19, 1971 'Bucks vs Knicks "We've Got to Spread a Little Anarchy" 'Sports Illustrated