NBA, Celtics vs Bucks, Boston: After three defeats in a row, Celtics finally found the win over the defending champions, Milwaukee Bucks, 117-103.
It is one of the cleanest victories for Celtics for his NBA season. From their defense to offense they were quite consistent. They only gave the Milwaukee trio of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kris Middleton, and Jrue Holiday 44 points in the combined total.
The opening phase was a different story as the Bucks shot 57% making six of their 14 threes. On the contrary, Celtics were weighing at 39% and only converting three of 11 chances from behind the arc. Jaylen Brown started the proceedings for the Celtics with a corner three. He was returning from a hamstring injury after five long games.
His return, however, would be again in question after colliding with Bobby Portis and limping away to be subbed. Although it looked nasty he would rather return and continue the game with hopefully no more setbacks.
Additionally, the visitors took advantage of the time their reserves spent on the floor, their bench players outscoring the Celtics 15-4 in the first. Their balanced scoring persisted throughout the first half, but the C’s were no slouch in that department. They may not have scored at a similar clip, but reserves like Romeo Langford and Grant Williams played pivotal roles in the effort to stay close.
The halftime score even with Bucks’s good shooting was in favor of the hosts, leading 51-50. Jason Tatum and Jaylen Brown scored 15 and 12 respectively while Marcus Smart was dishing assists like crazy. Pat Connaughton (10) and Jrue Holiday (9) led the way for the Bucks, who entered the game on a two-game winning streak.
The third quarter was when the scene started changing. Boston Celtics finally showing their true colors. They outscored Milwaukee 34-24. The fourth was no different, Bucks were eager to fight back but could not think of ways to handle the hosts.
The hero was Jason Tatum who had season-high 43 points and out of which 27 was in the second half alone. On top of a brilliant scoring performance, Tatum was efficient; he shot 16-of-25 (64 percent) from the field and 7 of 13 (53.8 percent) from three.
The score was not working out in the visitor’s favor, and to add more frustration, Kris Middleton would leave the game in the third quarter with a hyperextended knee. This would leave Bucks without a key offensive piece.
This would do it Celtics. Hopefully, they will carry forward this play and rhythm to win more games.
