BSJ Game Report: Celtics 140, Bucks 99 - Tatum & Brown combine for 70 in domination of Milwaukee

Everything you need to know about the Celtics blowout of the Milwaukee Bucks, with BSJ insight and analysis

IN A NUTSHELL

Jaylen Brown dropped 17 points and 3 assists in a monster first quarter that started out back and forth with multiple lead changes. They started to put some distance between them and Milwaukee with a 24-9 run fueled by Jayson Tatum getting hot from 3. That distance grew to 27 points thanks to a combination of frigid Bucks shooting and Malcolm Brogdon having a takeover stretch. There was no third-quarter push by the Bucks, who ended up falling down 44, giving us an entire fourth quarter of garbage time.

Box Score

HEADLINES

Okay, you guys proved your point: I’ll get into this more separately because it’s the big story of the game, but they said after the loss to Washington that they were comfortable with whichever seed and they felt confident winning in Milwaukee. Yeah, Milwaukee was on a back-to-back, but this was a little more than beating a tired team. The Celtics were sending a message. 

Tatum finds the range: Tatum was hitting everything, scoring 40 points on 18 shots because he was 8-10 from deep. He hit some wild shots, and a lot of shots that he has simply not been hitting all season long. These were the kinds of shots Tatum has hit in past hot streaks, and there's just nothing anyone can do when he’s feeling it like that. 

Robert Williams, difference-maker: He played 18:31, blocked 4 shots, and was a +20. He killed the Bucks on the glass, grabbing 4 offensive boards, and he was a nice outlet for guys who got in trouble. I talked about the big man rotation as one of the keys to the game, and Williams was part of the reason why the Celtics were able to pull away. 

Outside chance at the top seed: I don’t think they care about this, but grabbing the tiebreaker they still have an outside chance at that top seed. They’ll need Milwaukee to lose twice and they’ll have to be perfect, but the possibility remains, however unlikely. 

TURNING POINT

The Celtics were up 8, 36-28, when Jayson Tatum hit his first 3-pointer of the quarter, his second of the game, to trigger a 14-2 run to go up 22. Tatum had 10 of those points, and the Bucks never challenged after that. In fact, there was a point there where the run was 80-40. 

FIVE UP

Jayson Tatum: I’ve been wondering when Tatum was going to go on one of his trademark late-season runs. It hasn’t happened yet, but a game like this sure looks like it could be the start of one. The best part of this game was that Tatum still attacked and had some great finishes at the rim. 

Jaylen Brown: He was the catalyst with 17 points in the first quarter but his 5 assists were really nice to see. He was aggressive, hitting some very difficult shots, including a tough spinning mid-ranger against Giannis Antetokounmpo. He had just one turnover. 

Malcolm Brogdon: He had a stretch late in the second quarter where he went into takeover mode to push the lead to 30. He continues to get to the rim in situations where he seems like he’s cut off. This was a good example of how his ability to handle the ball and carry the offense will help in the playoffs.

Al Horford: He hit what I think is the deepest 3 of his career as part of a 4-6 night from deep. He might be the most important guy on the team in a series against Milwaukee because he spaces Brook Lopez out to the 3-point line and he can make Giannis Antokounmpo work hard for his points. 

Robert Williams: Sure looks like a bench role for Williams will be key in a playoff series. Start with Horford to play Lopez off the floor then bring Rob in when Lopez sits to fly over the top of the smaller Bucks. That has the potential to be a matchup nightmare for Milwaukee.

ONE DOWN

Derrick White: I’m just tired of the whole zero down/zero up schtick. Sorry Derrick. He had a quiet night with just 8 points and 5 rebounds, and early on Khris Middleton was shooting over the top of him with some ease. Just something to file away in case these teams match up again. 

TOP PLAYS

ONE TAKE KARALIS WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER

- Boston has the advantage when it’s full health vs. full health

As much as we’re focusing on the offensive numbers, the Celtics held the Bucks to 47 points at the half and 99 points overall. 

Once again, the Celtics made Antetokounmpo’s night very difficult, holding him to 40.7% shooting. He did take 5 3-pointers, making none, but the Celtics have shown the ability to frustrate him more than most teams.

Lopez is the key to the Bucks defense, but Horford’s ability to stretch the floor changes how the Bucks normally play, meaning they’ll have to rely on other guys to execute the defense while Lopez sits. The Bucks are deep enough to adapt, but it’s asking a lot of a team to remove and All-Defensive center because of a matchup issue and when Boston can bring in Robert Williams to punish smaller lineups.

Grayson Allen remains a target for the Celtics, and it’s looking like Jae Crowder might not be the impactful pick up some thought he was. Asking him to stay in front of Tatum or Brown is a lot, and the Celtics will make him do it a lot. 

For all the consternation, especially from me over the past few weeks, it’s easy to forget how good the Celtics can really be and what kinds of advantages they have against their competition. 

It’s not ideal that the Celtics have coasted as much as they have recently, but if they can play like this against the good teams they’ll meet in the playoffs, then they’ll make us forget all those bad losses. 

Next up: The Celtics host the Utah Jazz tomorrow night