“I’ll teach my guys to flop a little more” - Ime Udoka disappointed by the officiating in Game 3 vs the Bucks, believes Marcus Smart should have got a shooting foul
The Milwaukee Bucks secured a Game 3 victory over the Boston Celtics, but coach Ime Udoka did not like the officiating and blamed their defeat on wrong calls by the referees. The heated game saw both teams play with pure passion and grit, in a bid for one team to take advantage over the other.
Ime Udoka not happy with some of the calls late. “I’ll teach my guys to flop a little more.”
While the game was relatively close at the end of the first quarter and the half, the Bucks were 13 points ahead by the end of the third quarter. Halfway into the fourth quarter, the Celtics had reduced the margin significantly and had taken the lead with about two minutes to go on the clock.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, alongside Jrue Holiday, went on a rampage to get the Bucks back in the lead with a two-differential.
With seconds left on the clock, Marcus Smart was fouled by Holiday on the three-point line. It was expected that he would get a chance to go to the free throw line for three shots for a shooting foul. But the referees felt otherwise and called a non-shooting foul during the rip-through, which would see him shoot two free throws.
The Celtics bench and coaching staff, alongside Ime Udoka, were furious about the call, but could not challenge it as they had used up all of theirs. The Defensive Player of the Year made his first shot and made a play for a rebound after purposely missing the second shot, but Al Horford's rebound tap into the net was only a second too late as the buzzer went off.
During the post-game interview, Ime Udoka shared his reservations regarding the call, standing by his decision to use his last challenge on the offensive foul call against Grant Williams (which he lost). He stated that he will teach his guys "to flop a little more," reacting to the official's claim that, if players "don't fall down, they won't call the block charge."
"We used ours on the block charge on Grant, which would have been his fifth," Udoka said. "It would have been a two-point game. We like to save it more to towards the end, but their explanation is, if they don't fall down, they don't call it. So I'll teach my guys to flop a little more."
Can Ime Udoka lead the Boston Celtics to a series victory over the Milwaukee Bucks?
The Boston Celtics have been very consistent with their performances in the 2022 playoffs so far. They started out their playoff campaign with a clean sweep of the Brooklyn Nets and have been a strong enough opponent for the Milwaukee Bucks.
Ime Udoka led the boys to a blowout victory in Game 2, after they lost Game 1. Despite losing Game 3 to the Bucks, the Celtics still stand a chance of winning the series. Whether or not Udoka can get the boys through to the Eastern Conference finals is yet to be seen. But the unstoppable Giannis Antetokounmpo and his 42 points near triple-double might say otherwise.