The Milwaukee Bucks overcame an early deficit to beat the Celtics 116-101 on the strength of 31 points from Kyle Kuzma and 27 from Bobby Portis. Both players put up season-bests in the scoring column, and for Kuzma, his last bucket also gave him his highest scoring night ever in a Bucks jersey.
Kuzma’s night vs Boston punctuates solid bounceback season for Bucks
Kuzma’s previous Bucks career best was the 29 points he poured in overtime against Charlotte on November 14. The play didn’t stand out in the moment as the offense hummed smoothly along, but with 10:37 left against Boston, Kuzma reached his Bucks scoring high on a layup assisted by Cole Anthony. He didn’t score afterward, but the team didn’t need him to as Milwaukee cruised to an easy victory.
Before that, he hadn’t eclipsed the 30-point threshold since matching his Celtics total as a Washington Wizard last February 1. He did it again in March 2024. You have to go back to March 10th of that season to find a game where he scored more – 32 points in a win at Miami.
Although he’s been hot and cold, Kuzma has been a solid contributor more nights than not for the Bucks this season. Thursday was his fifth game scoring 20 or more points and he did so on an extremely efficient 13-of-17 from the field. Kuzma added six boards and a block to his box score.
25 games into his season, he is off to his most efficient start by far. His 51.4 field goal percentage is over six points higher than his career mark. He’s not lighting it up from behind the arc – 33.8% on threes puts him in line with his lifetime average – but he’s back to making free throws at an acceptable rate, 73.7%, after falling off in 2024-25.
Critically, Kuzma isn’t just making more of his shots because of luck. Never a pure shooter, he’s wisely cut back on his three-point attempts overall and his mid-range shots as well. Instead, he’s hunting opportunities at the rim. He is moving off the ball much better, cutting to the basket and making himself open in the corners for higher-quality three-point looks when he does take them.
In his fewest minutes since 2019-20, he’s averaging 13.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.1 assists while typically playing excellent defense. Kuzma is the Bucks’ go-to defender for the toughest wing and forward matchups the other team has to offer. He’s also at nearly a career-low 1.6 turnovers per game despite being involved as a secondary facilitator.
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