Milwaukee vs. Boston Game 6: Boston Forces a Game 7, 108-95

Led by Jayson Tatum’s 46 points, the Boston Celtics came into Fiserv Forum and stole Game 6 from the Bucks, 108-95. Game 7 will be in Boston on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. CST.

What a thrilling opening quarter. Boston would be stroking the ball from deep, as they went 8-of-15 in the opening period. On the other hand, Milwaukee didn’t see as much success (2-of-7), but still got a slew of points, courtesy of Giannis Antetokounmpo. He’d finish the quarter with 17 points. However, Boston would take a 28-26 lead into the second.

Things would open up in the quarter. Milwaukee would be unable to capitalize on second-chance efforts, which Boston was happy to dodge. Despite the Celtics’ 3-point shooting cooling down in the second, they road the points from Jayson Tatum and Marcus Smart to hold a 53-43 halftime lead.

The Bucks would continue to not be able to shoot the basketball in the third. That remained their largest weakness, which helped open the door to Boston to maintain control. Milwaukee would get things close to single digits on multiple occasions, but failed to get any further than that. Going into the fourth, the Celtics held a commanding 83-70 lead.

Milwaukee would throw numerous punches at Boston in the fourth, but none of them ever really landed. They’d get the deficit to four points at one point, but the Celtics always had an answer, particularly Jayson Tatum. He helped pad the Boston lead and help send them back to Boston with a 108-95 win.

Jayson Tatum was massive for the Celtics, pouring in a game-high 46 points. He connected on seven threes, which is as many as the Bucks had the entire night. Jaylen Brown poured in 22 while Marcus Smart had 21.

Giannis posted a massive stat line. He’d go off four 44 points while also corralling in 20 rebounds. Outside of Antetokounmpo, there wasn’t much scoring for Milwaukee. Jrue Holiday poured in 17 and Pat Connaughton chipped in with 14 off the bench.

Three Observations

Jayson Tatum was massive for Boston.

It really seemed as if he couldn’t miss. Bud mentioned how he felt the team did a good job against him, but man, the threes he was hitting were just backbreaking. Every time the Bucks got close in the fourth, he’d be the one that answered. He singlehandedly matched Milwaukee’s 3-point total on the evening (seven). It epitomizes just how talented of a player he is. Yes, he’s had his poor moments at times in this series, but last night he showed up in a major way.

Milwaukee needs other players to step up.

Outside of Giannis’ brilliance, there wasn’t much to speak of in terms of the Bucks’ offense. Jrue Holiday didn’t have his best outing, tallying just 17 points. Pat Connaughton did have a sound contribution off the bench with 14 points. However, when Giannis, Jrue, and Pat are the only players to hit a three, it’s going to be tough to win a game — especially Game 7 in what’s surely set to be a raucous TD Garden in Boston. If Milwaukee wants to advance on Sunday, they’re going to need more shotmaking.

Grayson Allen has had an awful series.

After a series in which he torched the Chicago Bulls, Grayson Allen has really struggled to find a groove in this series. Tonight may have been his least impactful game of the series. In 22 minutes played, Allen registered a -29 plus-minus, going for just three points. He failed to hit a single three (0-for-4 on the night). Moving forward, there needs to be some threes made from him. It’s going to be imperative for him to develop that shot, as without it, the Bucks simply don’t have enough scorers out on the floor to complement Giannis. Here’s what Bud told us regarding Grayson:

Bonus Bucks Bits

• The typical shot clocks were not functioning for this game. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen that before in a game. Backup ones were placed in the corners of the baseline.
• Boston’s 3-point shooting definitely overshadowed the Bucks. They’d connect on 17 threes compared to Milwaukee’s seven.
• George Hill also continues not to have it for the Bucks. In 18:35 of action, he failed to score a point and instead racked up five fouls. As for why Bud isn’t playing Jevon Carter? The short answer is because of Hill’s defense, but here’s his full answer:

• You already knew who was at Game 6...

• Giannis had some dumb fouls last night. That one where Derrick White earned the charge in the dying embers of the first half really stands out. It’s imperative that he doesn’t pick up any unnecessary fouls in Boston on Sunday, as that will be a disaster for the Bucks if he’s in foul trouble.
• Game 7 is going to be tough. Can the Bucks win three road games in the series? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.