Rapid Recap: Bucks 127, Celtics 121

With the conference standings still unsettled to the point where the final seedings are anyone’s guess, the Milwaukee Bucks took home a win (their 50th of the season!) against the Boston Celtics tonight on TNT, 127-121.

NBA.com Box Score

The two teams started things off maintaining a relatively even level of production, despite Boston missing Jayson Tatum. The Celtics started off (and stayed) red-hot from three, keeping up on the scoreboard despite having far fewer possessions in the first half. Milwaukee’s superior depth and penchant for ruling the space around the rim on both ends allowed them to maintain momentum in the game, leading at halftime 69-59.

Then the third quarter happened, because of course it did, and Boston brought the game all the way back into a tie. The Celtics continued hitting their threes and Milwaukee employed more switching and doubling to attempt to reverse the tide. Boston took the lead with a 7-0 run in the first 90 seconds of the fourth quarter, and it seemed that the Bucks lost all the momentum. As we’ve seen before, crunch time brought out the best from the Bucks, as they once again figured out a way to win in a close game.

Stat That Stood Out

The Bucks struggled in this game because of Boston’s scorching outside shooting; they were above 50% for much of the first half, and ended the game at 42.0% (21-for-50). Boston’s patient offense found seams in Milwaukee’s defense that aren’t consistently exploited (particularly since the Cs were shorthanded), and the Bucks ended up adjusting the defense in-game in order to try and force Boston to recalibrate, including closing the game with Bobby Portis on the court instead of Brook Lopez.

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