Everything you need to know about the Bucks beating the Celtics 120-107 in BSJ Quickie Form
Box Score
HEADLINES
Undermanned Celtics can’t hang with motivated Bucks: The Celtics were without three of their top nine players on Friday night (Al Horford, Marcus Morris, Aron Baynes) and the Bucks played a tier above them for the better part of 48 minutes. Giannis Antetokounmpo had a game-high 30 points while Khris Middleton added 21 points as the visitors used a dominant 57-22 first-half run to cruise to a 120-107 victory. It was the third-straight loss for Boston, which drops the hosts to the fifth seed in the East and 5.5 games behind the Raptors.
Jaylen Brown had a team-high 21 points for Boston off the bench to help keep the game respectable after the Bucks built a 26-point lead but that was one of the few bright spots on the night for the Green. The team shot a season-low 38.5 percent at home and knocked down just 29 percent of their 3-point attempts as Jayson Tatum, Gordon Hayward and Terry Rozier all struggled mightily (9-of-35 combined shooting).
Defense showing cracks without the bigs: The Celtics may be a top-five defensive team but they have not resembled one over the last week with their defensive anchors watching from the sidelines. The Bucks scored 27 or more points in four straight quarters on Friday night, getting whatever shot they wanted for the better part of 48 minutes on their way to 51 percent shooting and 40 percent shooting from 3-point range. They posted 120 points despite committing 21 turnovers, one of the highest numbers all season by a Boston opponent. The Celtics trailed by double-digits for the final 36 minutes of the game mostly due to an inability to put together a string of stops. With Baynes out for at least another month and the status of Horford going forward murky at best, it’s going to be tough sledding for C’s defense to hold down the fort with a string of high-powered offenses (Charlotte, Philadelphia, Houston) coming up on the schedule.
TURNING POINT
The Bucks erupted after the Celtics' 10-1 start to the game, rolling off a 57-22 run over the next 18 minutes that put them in command of the game. Boston’s offense went ice cold during the stretch but it was the Bucks supporting cast (Tony Snell, Thon Maker) plus Khris Middleton that proved to be the biggest factors in digging a hole for the Celtics that was too deep to climb out of. Boston failed to get closer than 11 points for the final 30 minutes.
TWO UP
Kyrie Irving: The All-Star flirted with a triple-double for the first time all season, scoring 15 points while posting team-highs with nine rebounds and seven assists. His shot was off (7-of-20) but he was one of the few players making the extra pass as the game wore on, and getting his hands dirty on the glass.
Jaylen Brown: It wasn’t pretty all night for the reserve guard but the shooting guard had a highlight-reel dunk in the second half and energized the Celtics’ offense in transition throughout their attempted comeback on the way to a team-high 21 points. He also snapped out of his 0-of-9 3-point shooting slump with three makes from beyond the arc.
TWO DOWN
Gordon Hayward: The Celtics’ offense went ice cold for the better part of the first half and Hayward was one of the reasons why. He got wide open jumpers from all over the floor but started the game just 1-of-9 from the field. Hayward also struggled against the Bucks’ length at the rim misfiring from close range a few times. This is an issue that will linger in a potential playoff series against the Bucks.
Terry Rozier: He had his breakout moment against the Bucks last postseason but was soundly beaten by the Bucks' bench on Friday night. He misfired on six of his seven shot attempts including all four from beyond the arc. He also as repeatedly burned by Eric Bledsoe on dribble penetration, making him a team-worst minus-20 in just 19 minutes of action.
TOP PLAY
Jaylen ? pic.twitter.com/viA6TZrWuQ
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) December 22, 2018
