MILWAUKEE - As remarkable as Giannis Antetokounmpo has been in delivering MVP-caliber performances during these NBA Finals while playing with an injured knee, there have been games in which he was good but not great.
Antetokounmpo being good hadn't been good enough for a Milwaukee Bucks win, though - until Game 4.
And while the two-time league MVP will likely need to be great again, his teammates must prove they can deliver on the road the way they have at home. The Bucks and the Phoenix Suns are tied 2-2 as the series returns to Arizona for Game 5 at 9 p.m. Eastern on Saturday.
The Bucks will try to maintain what they found Wednesday night in Milwaukee, where they rallied from a nine-point deficit in the fourth quarter of their 109-103 victory to draw even in the best-of-seven set.
"Going down the stretch, we kept believing in ourselves," Antetokounmpo said after Game 4. "We kept executing, setting screens. We kept running, we kept rebounding the ball, we kept blocking shots. We wanted this bad, and the team showed it tonight. But we've got to keep getting better."
Antetokounmpo has averaged 32.3 points, 14 rebounds and 5.5 assists through the first four games of the title round despite hyperextending his left knee in the Bucks' previous series, an injury that caused him to miss the last two games of the Eastern Conference finals against the Atlanta Hawks.
The Bucks showed Wednesday they can beat the Suns even when their three-time All-NBA first-team selection isn't at his absolute best.
Antetokounmpo had 26 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists in Game 4 as well as a spectacular block that prevented Deandre Ayton from tying the game with 1:14 left. Those numbers would make just about any other NBA player envious, but they actually represented a step back after Antetokounmpo delivered back-to-back performances of more than 40 points and 10 rebounds in the second and third games against Phoenix.
It was Khris Middleton - not Antetokounmpo - who scored 40 points to lead the Bucks to their comeback victory. Middleton reeled off eight straight points in the closing minutes to help the Bucks turn a 99-97 deficit into a 105-99 lead.
"That's what he does down the stretch," Antetokounmpo said. "We want him to have the ball. We want him to be the decision maker."
Others chipped in as well. Jrue Holiday followed his 21-point performance in Game 3 by shooting just 4-of-20 in Game 4, but he also made one of the night's biggest plays when he stole the ball from Chris Paul, sparking a fast break that resulted in a Middleton layup to put the Bucks ahead 103-99 with 27.2 seconds left.
"That's what it's all about - learning, learning how to win different types of ballgames, different styles," said Middleton, who provided 10 of the last 12 points scored by the Bucks. "And that's what that was moment was about - finding a way to win a game where it seemed like we weren't going to win and give us a chance to still have a life, going to Phoenix with a little bit of confidence, with a little bit of momentum."
The Bucks must win at least once in Phoenix to have a shot at their first title in 50 years. The last time the Bucks played there, they lost by double digits even as Antetokounmpo produced 42 points, 12 rebounds and four assists.
The Suns guarded Antetokounmpo well enough Wednesday to make them believe their wall of defenders can prevent him from repeating those superhuman outbursts he delivered in previous games.
"We're trying to give him some different looks, especially in the half court," Suns coach Monty Williams said. "I thought our guys did an unreal job in the half court. We were doubling him at times and firing out to their shooters, just trying to take him off of his rhythm. In transition, the wall was a lot better tonight. It's something that we can get better at."
That's going to put more pressure on Antetokounmpo's teammates to play better on the road.
Holiday must regain his shooting touch while maintaining his ferocious defense. Pat Connaughton has to continue producing off the bench. But most of all, the Bucks will need huge road results from Middleton, the unsung star who has turned this postseason into a personal showcase.
Antetokounmpo said Middleton's Game 4 performance was "incredible," then added: "We need him to keep doing it. We are within reach of our goals."