MILWAUKEE -- The physicality level of the series between the Milwaukee Bucks and Chicago Bulls reached a new level in Game 6.
Less than a minute in Thursday, Bulls forward Mike Dunleavy delivered what appeared to be a closed-fisted punch to the jaw of Bucks guard Michael Carter-Williams.
The blow went unnoticed by officials but was quickly picked up on television replay. Carter-Williams immediately had to go to the locker room to have his jaw and mouth examined.
Carter-Williams didn't return until the 1:42 mark of the first quarter with the Bucks trailing 32-16.
"My teeth are a little messed up," Carter-Williams said while exiting the BMO Harris Bradley Center. "People take cheap shots, and you've got to go along with it.
"He (Dunleavy) was playing cheap and you can't control that. Unfortunately, we got penalized for it."
When asked about the play after the game, Dunleavy wouldn't address the incident and if he would be suspended for part of Chicago's Eastern Conference Semifinals series with Cleveland.
"Not sure. I don't recall that," Dunleavy said. "I'm sure they'll look at a bunch of stuff."
Late in the second quarter, Dunleavy hit Giannis Antetokounmpo in the face away from the play. Antetokounmpo then ran down the court and lowered his shoulder into the rib cage of a shooting Dunleavy, knocking the former Bucks player into the first row of seats.
The play was originally deemed a common foul but was reversed to a flagrant-2 after a review, meaning Antetokounmpo was ejected from the game with 1:34 left in the second quarter.
"It wasn't very smart," Bucks coach Jason Kidd said of Antetokounmpo's shot on Dunleavy. "We've got to learn from other people's mistakes and you've got to pay attention. He'll learn from that mistake that he made tonight."
Dunleavy brushed off the flagrant foul as something that happens during an intense playoff series.
"Look, there's a lot of stuff that went on," Dunleavy said. "I think guys got tangled up a bunch, there's a bunch of different things that went on. I don't recall anything. In the heat of battle guys get upset about stuff, especially when you're losing by a lot. So no big deal, it happens. We're moving on."
With the Bulls up 81-38 with 6:03 left in third quarter, Dunleavy was called for an offensive foul on a moving screen set on Carter-Williams. The young Bucks point guard reacted and tossed Dunleavy to the floor.
"He kind of got under our guys' skin," Pachulia said. "He picked the young guys. He picked the right guys. Unfortunately, our guys responded. When we responded, we got hurt. But they are going to learn from this. I'm sure in the future they won't make the same mistake."
In the end, the series between Milwaukee and Chicago had 14 technical fouls and four flagrant fouls in six games. Nine technical fouls were called on the Bucks in the series, including one on O.J. Mayo in Game 6 when he left the bench to confront Bulls guard Jimmy Butler.
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