76ers Playoff Watch: Jimmy Butler, Heat Swept by Bucks in NBA Playoffs

Hours before the Philadelphia 76ers and the Washington Wizards tipped off their Game 3 matchup in D.C., the Miami Heat and the Milwaukee Bucks fired up their Game 4 matchup in South Beach.

Despite being the defending Eastern Conference Champions, the Miami Heat haven't defended their conference title too well in the postseason leading up to Saturday's matchup.

In Game 1, the Heat put up a good fight on the road in Milwaukee as they forced overtime in the last seconds of the game. However, the Bucks came out on top when the free period concluded, giving Milwaukee a 1-0 lead.

When Game 2 rolled around, the outcome was slightly different. Miami didn't stand a chance, and Milwaukee took advantage of their second home game and smoked the Heat to grab a 2-0 lead before heading to Miami.

Some thought that perhaps Miami could climb out of their 0-2 hole with two-straight home games, but even on their own court, they struggled to keep up with the Bucks. A dominant Game 3 allowed the Bucks to pick up another win, forcing the Heat to face elimination on Saturday.

The urgency might've been there mentally for the Heat, but it didn't show as the game went on. Despite getting off to a 64-57 lead in the first half, the Heat didn't have the willpower to maintain the lead all game long.

When the third quarter rolled around, the Bucks took advantage of Miami's weaknesses and outscored them 34-21, picking up a solid six-point lead heading into the final quarter of action. The Heat needed a similar fourth-quarter performance to Game 1 when they fought hard to stay alive and force overtime, but they simply didn't have the energy to do it on Saturday.

Jimmy Butler, who's typically known to shine in crunch time, shot just 1-5 from the field in the final nine minutes of the game. As Miami's offense stalled and collected just 18 points in the fourth quarter, the Bucks dropped nearly 30 points, given the Heat no shot of coming back and forcing a Game 5.

With Saturday's loss, the Heat become the first NBA team to get eliminated from the playoffs this season. Therefore, the Sixers won't be facing their former star Jimmy Butler in the postseason anytime soon.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_ & Instagram: @JGrassoNBA.