MILWAUKEE -- Everything you need to know about the Celtics’ 96-89 win over the Bucks in quickie form.
HEADLINES
Kyrie Irving catches fire early: The All-Star guard (24 points) put on an offensive masterpiece for much of the first half, carrying a skittish Boston offense with 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting. He showed off more of his passing than scoring chops in the second half (five of seven assists after intermission) but he was definitely at his highest comfort level in a Celtic uniform in all aspects of his offensive game.
Al Horford was everywhere in the second half: People love to complain that the 31-year-old forward doesn’t put up the kind of offensive numbers that constitutes a max salary, but he silenced those doubters with arguably the best offensive effort of his Celtic career on Thursday night. The big man scored 16 of his season-high 27 points in the second half, including a sensational 4-of-5 mark from 3-point range to lead the visitors to a decisive win.
TURNING POINT
The Celtics closed out the third quarter with a 7-0 run and extended their lead to double digits in the first half of the fourth quarter despite playing a bench unit of Smart/Rozier/Ojeleye/Tatum/Baynes. With that group buying critical rest for the starters, the Celtics extended the spurt into an 18-3 run that featured strong defense from Ojeleye and good outside shooting from Smart before the Bucks stopped the bleeding. With the added rest though, Horford and Irving were able to close the door for the win.
TWO UP
Irving: Easily the most complete offensive performance of Irving’s career as a Celtic. In a first half where no one outside of Horford could put the ball in the bucket, Irving scored 16 of Boston’s 43 points with a mix of outside shooting and isolation plays. In the second half, he mixed in more great passing, opening up the floor for a number of great looks with his penetration and out of the pick-and-roll.
Horford: A season-best performance for the big man, who put the Celtics on his back with a 13-point third quarter on 5-of-7 shooting. He also handled the responsibility of Giannis Antetokounmpo on defense for multiple stretches, forcing the 6-foot-11 forward into shots from outside of the paint.
TWO DOWN
Jaylen Brown in the first half: The second-year wing came crashing back down to earth in Milwaukee after a superb start to the season. He finished with just nine points on the night, including just two in the first half after going 0-of-8 from the field. The Bucks defense continually let him roam free for open jumpers from beyond the arc and he was unable to make them pay. He recovered in the second half with a pair of timely 3s.
Terry Rozier in the first half: Like Brown, Rozier looked more like the inconsistent version of himself that we hadn’t seen since last season. He took a couple foolish shots in traffic, struggled with his outside jumper, going scoreless in the first half on 0-of-5 shooting. He bounced back though with a couple of big shots in traffic at the start of the fourth quarter, showing the kind of consistency the C’s have been seeking from him.
INJURIES
Marcus Smart looked good from a mobility standpoint in his return from a sprained ankle. Jayson Tatum landed on Tony Snell’s foot on a 3-point attempt in the first quarter but remained in the game.
TOP PLAYS
HOW DID HE GET THROUGH THAT?! pic.twitter.com/GdqeK9udWf
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) October 27, 2017
