In the 17-year history of the present playoff system -- with a best-of-five series in the first round -- never before have both of the top seeds and one of the second seeds been taken to five games as they have this season.

Watching the Milwaukee Bucks come to within an eyelash of upsetting the top-seeded Indiana Pacers Thursday night was both exhilarating and sad. It was great to see Reggie Miller's still got the prime-time stuff to go off for 41 points in a deciding game. It was sad because coach George Karl was proving that the Western Conference style of athletic, open-floor offense and trapping defense could come within two points of knocking off a staid, old Eastern Conference power like the Pacers. And that's not to mention the vindication he would have felt after his Sonics of 1994 were the first top seed to ever get defeated by an eighth seed.

And nobody believed the Sacramento Kings had a chance to unseat the Los Angeles Lakers, the team with the best record in the NBA this season. But most insiders believed the Kings had the goods to make it interesting. Chris Webber and Vlade Divac and the Kings' "Bench Mob" were more than what the Lakers could have anticipated going into the series. But the Lakers and NBC could rest assured the NBA would not allow the Kings to beat the Lakers in Game 5 at the Staples Center. It just couldn't happen, but the rest of the series was simply delicious.

That left the even more staid Utah Jazz to deal with the Seattle SuperSonics, a talented but confusing team that bickered and buckled but didn't break all the way to the Delta Center for Game 5. Sonics leader Gary Payton has undoubtedly sealed his spot as the best guard in the NBA since Michael Jordan retired, and Utah's Karl Malone remains the most age-defying physical specimen of this generation. And both of their mouths ran off -- frequently at each other -- to add spice to the theatre.

So as we approach the conference semifinals, it's time to look back at the highlights and lowlights of the first round.

Surprise teams

Best: Milwaukee Bucks and Sacramento Kings. As we previously stated -- along with the Seattle SuperSonics -- this was the first time in 17 years that two eighth seeds and a seventh seed took two No. 1s and a No. 2 the distance. Bucks coach George Karl played a lot of young talent, staring Ray Allen, Sam Cassell, Glenn Robinson and Tim Thomas. A young, strong and active young swingman named Darvin Ham scared the old Pacers to death. The Kings really went after the Lakers, exposing their lack of depth up front and overall. Also, the Sonics coming back from 0-2 against the Jazz was unexpected considering the finger-pointing, turmoil and three different lineups by coach Paul Westphal.

Worst: Charlotte Hornets and Toronto Raptors. The Hornets played great ball late in the season, holding it together after the death of Bobby Phills, but then folded in four games against a battered Philadelphia 76ers team that taped Allen Iverson together and played half its games without starting point guard Eric Snow. The Hornets had high expectations this season, but the front court of Elden Campbell, Derrick Coleman and Anthony Mason, so impressive on paper, just didn't dominate a much less talented Sixers front line and All-Star guard Eddie Jones was never a major factor ... how culpable is coach Paul Silas? As for the Raptors, they were the Knicks' worst nightmare during the regular season, then went into the tank to get swept. The young duo of Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady discovered first hand the difference between the regular season and a veteran playoff team. Better luck next year.

Surprise individuals

Best: Allen Iverson and Rashard Lewis. Considering Iverson's accumulation of injuries (shoulder, toe, elbow and ankle), most expected him to either be ineffectual or actually miss a game. Instead, he proved to be one of the great gamers of his generation, leading the Sixers over the Hornets in four and allowing himself some rest. Lewis, just 20 after joining the Sonics mere months after his high school graduation in 1998, the slim 6-10 forward has forced himself into the starting lineup in the playoffs, averaging 14.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and shooting 43 percent from 3-point range and 81 percent from the free throw line. Also, Jason Kidd returned for Game 4 to help the Suns eliminate the Spurs just six weeks after he broke his ankle. And Jarvis Ham was huge for the Bucks.

Worst: Raptors coach Butch Carter was a major distraction for his team, actually suing Knicks forward Marcus Camby for accusing him of lying. It was just another in an incredible flurry of outrageous commentary by Carter that did nothing but hurt his young team. As for players, Anthony Mason was a major disappointment for the Hornets, failing to be a serious contributor in neither Game 3 nor Game 4. Also Sacramento's Jason Williams continues to prove he is the most overrated player in the NBA.

So long, coach Muss

Few had no opinion on Bill Musselman, who died Friday from complications from bone marrow cancer and liver disease.

At the age of 59, Musselman was an assistant coach for the Trail Blazers this season, ending his 27-year career as a coach. He was a hard-core disciplinarian, very much into conditioning and not everybody could deal with him. But he was a man of his word and a great basketball mind.

"I owe him my career," Timberwolves forward Sam Mitchell said. "He promised me when I went to Europe he wouldn't forget me, and that's how I ended up on the Timberwolves."

He was the Timberwolves' first coach after expansion and also was the head coach in Cleveland. You can count on the Blazers dedicating the rest of their playoffs to Muss.

Shots from the perimeter

• It appears Grizzlies president Stu Jackson has resigned himself to finding a new job now that Michael Heisley has committed to Dick Versace to run the organization and probably coach. So Jackson is headed back to the NBA office, reportedly returning to his old job as director of operations, working for vice president Rod Thorn.
• Look for Tim Hardaway to play every second he can for the Heat in their series with the Knicks beginning Sunday. Hardaway sat out the opening round due to a sprained ankle and has struggled all season with a failing knee and a foot problem as well. Expect Pat Riley to give Hardaway "heat checks," to see if he can get streaky with 3-pointers, otherwise rookie Anthony Carter will run the team.
• The panic has begun to set in on the San Antonio Spurs, as Tim Duncan didn't play in the four-game loss to the Suns after tearing a cartilage in his knee. Now he is a free agent and hasn't committed to returning to the Spurs next season.