Final: Bucks 104, Celtics 102 -- Morris misses at buzzer; Series tied 2-2

MILWAUKEE -- The Celtics have been tough to put away all year long and the same held true on Sunday afternoon. After the Bucks blew a 20-point second half lead, they got a game-winning tip-in from Giannis Anteotkounmpo with five seconds remaining. Marcus Morris missed a fadeaway midrange jumper at the buzzer, enabling the Bucks to escape with a 104-102 win over the Celtics and tie the series up at 2-2.

Jaylen Brown posted a career-high 34 points in the defeat while Jayson Tatum added 18 of his 21 points in the second half. Antetokounmpo led the hosts with 27 points while Khris Middleton added 23.

Much more to come from Milwaukee...

WHO: Celtics (2-1) vs. Bucks (1-2)
WHEN: 1:00 p.m.
WHERE: Bradley Center
RADIO: 98.5 The Sports Hub
TV: ABC

Celtics
PG: Terry Rozier
SG: Jaylen Brown
SF: Jayson Tatum
PF: Al Horford
C: Aron Baynes

Bucks
PG: Eric Bledsoe
SG: Malcolm Brogdon
F: Khris Middleton
F: Giannis Antetokounmpo
C: Tyler Zeller

Third Quarter Notes

• Bucks appeared to be on the verge of putting this game away early, pushing the lead to as high as 20 as C's struggled with some defensive mistakes, allowing easy looks for Middleton and Anteokounmpo.


• C's finally managed to tighten things up midway through the frame as Semi Ojeleye came in to counter an early Thon Maker sub. That gave the C's some better versatility on D and the starters plus Ojeleye put together a quick 12-2 run.


• Quick transition attacks were the key to the turnaround as Brown and Tatum found each other for easy looks with strong drives and kickouts, along with smooth dishes at the rim.


• C's stuck with starting unit for first 10 minutes which allowed them to really chip in to the lead against the Bucks second unit.


• Brown continues to be on a tear with 24 points, while Jayson Tatum caught fire in third quarter with 13 points of his own.

• C's offense continues to look like a rudderless ship with Thon Maker on the floor for the Bucks.


• Milwaukee showing plenty of fight and length all over the court, making the C's work hard for easy looks everywhere. Their early misses around the basket have vanished, as have the offensive rebounds. They scored just nine points in a 12 minute span taking back to six-minute mark of first quarter.


• Maker has knocked down a couple jumpers and completely changed the look of the C's defense. With having to account for five shooters, C's must switch on the perimeter, which has led into more easy mismatches for Middleton and Parker.


• Yabusele got a few minutes after Marcus Morris picked up another tech.


• Parker continues to make an impact on both ends of the floor for the second straight contest, snapping out of his funk in Boston. He's playing with a lot more purpose defensively (two blocks, three steals) and has used a strong inside/outside game to score nine points against a variety of defenders.


• Jaylen Brown has kept the C's offense in the game by scoring 11 points in the first nine minutes of the second quarter. No one else on the team has anything going right now.

• Celtics come out struggling from the field (3-of-10 start) but have been absolutely destroying the offensive glass, with five early offensive boards. Baynes and Horford have wreaked havoc.


• Tremendous early defense by Baynes and Horford on Giannis keeping him away from the rim and contesting well on jumpers.


• C's also making life much tougher for Middleton early by getting into his air space on jumpers and sending support help.


• Game started to change midway through the quarter once both teams went to their benches.


• Marcus Morris turned into a black hole on offense, forcing up contested midrange jump shots (2-of-7) with a couple foolish turnovers.


• A couple mistakes in transition led the Bucks to easy looks thanks to the presence of abari Parker, Dellavedova and Thon Maker lifted the Bucks out of a sluggish start with a 19-5 run to end the quarter.

• John Henson will miss his second straight game with a sore back for the Bucks. Tyler Zeller is expected to get another start at center in his place.


• The emergence of Thon Maker as a stretch center in Game 3 will test the C's defensive attack. Brad Stevens talked about how C's will have to adjust to it. “I think we have to do a great job of challenging his shots," Stevens said. "At the end of the day, like I said last night, he’s a very athletic, very capable shooter. He had a huge impact on the game yesterday and we just have to do a little bit better job guarding him. But again, you have to pick your poison a little bit. But if you play with multiple efforts I think you can do both.”


• Khris Middleton continues to punish the Celtics with his offense in this series, shooting over 63 percent from the field and 3-point range while averaging 28 ppg. "Well we’ve tried to put a lot of attention onto him, and the way that he was scoring. And some of his individual tendencies," Stevens said. "And I did not think we did a very good job guarding him yesterday"


• Game 4 will be close to a 36-hour turnaround for both teams, giving less time than usual for adjustments and rest after a late local start on Friday night. Joe Prunty reflected on the last time his team had to go through it. "I remember doing that one year when I was in San Antonio playing the Lakers," he said. "The bottom line is everybody has to be ready regardless of how the previous game goes, because it’s coming. So what happened in the last game will impact this just like it does from game to game in the series, but both teams went through it. Both teams have to be ready, have to be focused on what the task is at hand, and be ready to play. We’ve talked a lot about here not easing yourself into the game. When you come into the game, whether you’re starting, whether you’re coming off the bench, be ready to go."