BOSTON – The Celtics and Bucks turned up the pressure and intensity for a regular season game, and again, the C’s came away with the win. This time, it was a 111-105 victory Friday at the TD Garden as the Celtics swept the Bucks in the season series.
With the win, Boston improved to 19-4 while Milwaukee dropped to 11-11. The physicality was present throughout Friday’s game as bodies hit the floor and fouls came with some force.
The Celtics led throughout the first half, courtesy of a strong start by Jaylen Brown. But the Bucks stayed close and made their 3-pointers. The Celtics went 0-12 from behind the arc in the second quarter, allowing the Bucks to take a small lead into halftime. It was the first time this season that the C’s didn’t hit at least one 3-pointer in a quarter.
From there, Friday remained a close game throughout the second half as neither team was able to go long. That set the stage for a physical finish on Friday. It had the intensity of a playoff game as neither team backed down and let the other take the physical advantage. In the end, it was the C’s who emerged victorious in the clutch game.
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Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 34 points and 10 rebounds. Brown added 25 more points. Giannis Antetokounmpo had 30 points and 11 rebounds, while Damian Lillard had 31 points and five rebounds. The C’s were without Kristaps Porzingis as they saved him for the second game of the back.
The Celtics are ending an intense stretch as they face each other Marcus Smart and the Grizzlies at 8 p.m. Saturday at the TD Garden. Here are four takeaways from Boston’s win over Milwaukee:
The stars appeared: While the Celtics are deep and have relied on their depth, they got consistent production from their best players. Brown and Tatum combined for 59 points. On the other hand, the Bucks got a total of 61 points from Antetokounmpo and Lillard. Milwaukee also had Khris Middleton for his season debut on Friday as he scored XX points off the bench on a minutes restriction. While there were other important cast members on Friday, the best players were on display.
Return: Brown and Antetokounmpo have a bit of history going back to their last meeting, and there was at least some friction on Friday. Brown called Bucks star a ‘kid’ after the C’s beat the Bucks in Milwaukee last month. The Bucks star hit Brown with a fake handshake that prompted Brown’s comments. This time, Brown received a technical foul after looking at Antetokounmpo coming up the court. Brown had just flagged down Antetokounmpo, giving him the “too small” gesture, which also prompted Antetokounmpo to elbow Brown a bit. The antics weren’t over the top, but there was a little extra juice in Friday’s game.
Warming up: Sam Hauser had a slow start to the season, in part due to some back issues he dealt with during training camp. But he has started to find his groove shooting the ball and that was the case again on Friday. Hauser finished with 16 points off the bench, shooting 4-of-8 on 3-pointers. Hauser entered Friday’s game shooting 36.4% from 3, but has started to heat up in recent games.
Final meeting: In a scheduling quirk, after playing three times in three months, the Celtics and Bucks will not meet again in the 2024-25 season. They beat the Bucks on Oct. 28 at home and Nov. 10 on the road, meaning they already clinched the season series. The Bucks struggled out of the gate, so it might not end up as important as a head-to-head tiebreaker. But that’s a major wrinkle at least when it comes to the two Eastern rivals.