The Milwaukee Bucks were without Giannis Antetokounmpo (hamstring injury) on Wednesday night on the road against the Boston Celtics. Milwaukee was trailing all night long and they outscored Boston by 15 points in the fourth quarter, but the Bucks rally fell short as the Celtics hung on by a final score of 122-119.
Boston has won seven straight games and do improve to 55-14 on the season. The Celtics are the one seed at the moment in the Eastern Conference. Milwaukee dropped to 44-25 on the season and they are still the two seed in the Eastern Conference with the Cleveland Cavaliers losing to the Miami Heat on Wednesday night.
Damian Lillard led the Bucks in scoring on Wednesday night with 32 points. This is one of the very few times that Milwaukee has lost this season when Lillard has scored 30 or more points in a game. Lillard also grabbed four rebounds, recorded six assists, blocked one shot, and recorded one steal.
Bobby Portis Jr. scored 24 points for the Milwaukee Bucks off the bench. He is continuing to make his case for the Sixth Man of the Year Award in the NBA. Portis Jr. recorded another double-double as he grabbed 15 rebounds. Khris Middleton also added 22 points for the Bucks and this is the second straight game that he has played in. This is a good sign for them moving forward.
The Boston Celtics Can’t Possibly Be Feeling Good About Themselves After the Win Against the Milwaukee Bucks
Boston was in control against Milwaukee without the Bucks’s best player all night long. The fact that the Milwaukee Bucks were able to attempt a comeback like that and almost win could be a good thing for the Bucks and not a good thing for the Celtics.
Boston was at home and only won by three points. If they were to meet in the Eastern Conference Finals, some Milwaukee Bucks fans are confident they would be able to beat them. Jrue Holiday did not play on Wednesday night for the Boston Celtics due to injury.
Five different players scored in double figures for Boston. Jayson Tatum led the way with 31 points. He also grabbed eight rebounds, recorded four assists, blocked two shots, and recorded three steals. Jaylen Brown was on the injury report before this contest, but he was able to play. Brown finished with 21 points, eight rebounds, two assists, and one steal.
Derrick White scored 23 points, Kristaps Porzingis scored 17 points, and Payton Prichard scored 19 points off the bench for the Celtics. Prichard is becoming an X-factor for this basketball team. Despite having five players in double figures, they were lucky to not blow this matchup.
There will still be question marks about the Boston Celtics getting it done when the playoffs come around. The Bucks will not have the pressure that Boston will have when the NBA playoffs roll around.
