Inside The Celtics

What Stood Out from the Celtics' Loss vs. Bucks in Game 1: Boston 'Caught Off Guard' by Milwaukee's Physicality in Series Opener

Giannis Antetokounmpo scores 24 points, distributes game-high 12 assists while Bucks' physical defense limits Celtics to 89 points in 101-89 win.

Bobby Krivitsky

David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

For most of Game 1, the Celtics struggled to find a rhythm offensively, playing indecisively against the length and physicality of a Bucks defense that stifled Boston, packing the paint to protect the rim, but still being able to challenge three-point shooters or at least limit how many attempts the home team got from the corners.

And while the Celtics, especially Al Horford, did an admirable job defending Giannis Antetokounmpo, holding him to 24 points on 25 shots, the former MVP inflicted considerable damage as a facilitator, dishing out a game-high 12 assists.

Now, for a deep dive into Milwaukee's series-opening victory.

Bucks Close First Frame with 10-0 Run to Go Up by Three Entering Second Quarter

Boston opened the game with Al Horford on Giannis Antetokounmpo. And after the latter got the ball at the left elbow extended, Horford, with help from Jayson Tatum, forced Antetokounmpo to drive baseline, and the former MVP lost his footing, starting the day off with a turnover.

Horford then drained a three from the left wing for the game's first points. 

A few minutes later, Horford screened for Tatum, got the ball as he rolled hard to the rim, and went right at Brook Lopez, going for a layup that didn't go down, but with Lopez out of the picture, Robert Williams threw down a thunderous put-back jam.

Jrue Holiday responded, converting on his second-straight three-point attempt, tying the game at eight. But by the 7:30 mark, the Bucks had already committed four turnovers, leading to five points for Boston. The defending champs were lucky it wasn't more as indecisiveness from Jaylen Brown resulted in a transition turnover, and Tatum missed a contested fast-break layup.

At the 5:47 mark, Tatum drove hard through the defense, and even though he missed a floater challenged by Lopez, Robert Williams got multiple cracks at a put-back, tipping it in on his second attempt to give Boston a 16-12 lead.

Marcus Smart followed that up by getting two points from deep in the paint after he back cut, and Horford delivered a bounce pass that got to Smart in stride, extending the advantage to 18-12 with 4:50 to play in the period.

A minute later, a Jevon Carter turnover represented the seventh of the first frame for Milwaukee. It also led to a foul on Giannis that sent Jaylen Brown to the line, where he went 1/2, putting Boston ahead 19-12.

At the 2:25 mark, Grant Williams, who had cashed in on a three on the possession before, missed a triple from the right corner, but Brown elevated for an emphatic rim-rattling put-back slam to put the Celtics ahead 24-17.

At the 1:05 mark, Carter buried a three from the left wing, part of an 8-0 run by Milwaukee that gave the defending champions a 25-24 lead. Antetokounmpo lofted a pass to Wes Matthews for an alley-oop layup that gave Milwaukee a 27-24 advantage entering the second frame.

Bucks' Defense Stifles Celtics, Helping Defending Champs Take Double-Digit Lead Into the Break

Payton Pritchard opened the second quarter by splashing a three that tied the game at 27. The second-year guard drained an open three from the right corner a couple of minutes later to put Boston back on top, 32-31.

At the 7:41 mark, with the Celtics trailing 33-32, Jaylen Brown missed a three from 25-feet out. At that juncture, he was 1/5, including 0/4 from beyond the arc and had only three points. Tatum was 0/5 with one point.

Not only were those out of rhythm, but Boston was playing indecisively. Rather than reading and reacting, trusting their instincts to lead them in the right direction.

At the 4:10 mark, Tatum stepped into a pull-up three from above the break and buried it, giving him six points and cutting his team's deficit to 45-40. Horford followed that up with a triple from the right wing, making a two-point game. But Grayson Allen countered with his third three of the day, giving him nine points and pushing Milwaukee's lead back to eight.

With less than 1:15 left in the second quarter, Smart came off a screen from Tatum, drove into the paint and got fouled by Pat Connaughton. He also got hit on the right arm by Carter. His right shoulder appeared to pop out on the play, forcing him to call to the bench for a sub. He went with a trainer to the locker room, hunched over, holding his arm.

With just under 30 seconds remaining, Antetokounmpo cashed in on a pair of free throws, putting the Bucks up 56-46 as part of an 11-3 run that helped them take a ten-point lead into halftime.

Antetokounmpo registered a game-high 14 points in the first two quarters. He also did a great job facilitating, dishing out seven assists. Antetokounmpo utilized his height and length to throw the ball over the top of the defense, and he was making simple swing passes to shooters open due to the extra attention required to slow down Antetokounmpo. He also grabbed eight rebounds in the first half.

As a team, the Bucks were 10/20 from beyond the arc, generated 18 fast-break points, 14 off turnovers, and 14 in the paint. As well as they were playing offensively, their defense was even more impressive, stifling the Celtics and using their length to pack the paint, challenge at the rim, and then close out on shooters, preventing the home team from finding a rhythm.

The Celtics entered the break shooting 34 percent from the field, 10/28 (35.7 percent) from three, and like Milwaukee, committed nine turnovers. Horford and Tatum led Boston in scoring with nine points each. However, the latter was 3/10 from the field. Brown had six points on 2/8 shooting. Aiding the hosts cause was 11 points on second-chance opportunities. 

Neither Team Scores 25 Points in Tightly Contested Third Quarter

Marcus Smart was back in to the start the second half. He nearly scored the first points of the third quarter, but his transition layup rolled around the rim and then out.

At the 9:32 mark, Tatum drilled his second-straight three, this one a side-step triple from the left wing over Lopez to cut Boston's deficit to 58-52.

About midway through the frame, Robert Williams was on the receiving end of an inadvertent kick to the corn flakes from Antetokounmpo. It took him a few possessions to regroup, but the Timelord stayed on the floor.

Derrick White drilled a needed three from the right corner to make it an eight-point game, 68-60. After that, Smart tried to draw a charge on Holiday. When he got up, he fell back to the floor, grimacing. When he rose, he was limping and reached for his knee. He was in considerable pain, but stayed on the floor. And on the Bucks' next possession, he took a charge from Connaughton.

With 4:03 to play, after Antetokounmpo missed a free throw, he picked up his third foul going for the rebound. The next trip down for Boston, Antetokounmpo tried to blitz Tatum but, in a regrettable decision, barreled into him for his fourth foul, sending him to the bench for Lopez.

At the 2:10 mark, with Milwaukee leading 74-66, Ime Udoka successfully challenged a foul on Grant Williams that would have sent Lopez to the line for three free throws.

With 48 seconds remaining, Tatum drove and kicked it out to White for a three from the right wing that cut Boston's deficit to 76-69. Holiday answered with a layup over Horford. But after several chances on the Celtics' next possession, Tatum earned a trip to the free-throw line where he went 1/2, making it a 78-70 game. That's where the score stood going into the fourth quarter.

After three, Tatum had a game-high 18 points, but the only other Celtic scoring in double figures was Smart, who had ten. As for the Bucks, Antetokounmpo had a team-best 17, and Holiday registered 16.

Bucks Fend Off Celtics in Low-Scoring Fourth Quarter

At the 8:37 mark of the final frame, Bobby Portis knocked down an open three from the left corner, extending Milwaukee's lead to 87-72. Conversely, Boston still hadn't made a field goal, scoring just two points, courtesy of Derrick White free throws.

With 8:16 left, Horford drilled an open three from the left wing to make it an 87-75 game, but Carter countered with a jumper, and Holiday then hit a three from above the break. Fortunately for the Celtics, Brown responded with one of his own, bringing the score to 92-78.

Antetokounmpo then circumnavigated tenacious defense from Grant Williams by throwing the ball off the backboard to himself and throwing down an emphatic jam.

With 5:04 on the clock, Jaylen Brown drove to collapse the defense, sparking ball movement that he ultimately got rewarded for, cashing in on a three from the left corner that pulled Boston withing 13, 94-81.

The Celtics continued moving the ball effectively, finding Grant Williams for a clean look at a three he drained to make it a 96-84 game with 3:50 to play, prompting Mike Budenholzer to take a timeout.

With 2:45 remaining, Smart drove, and when he couldn't get a layup to stay down, Tatum came crashing in, cleaning it up with a put-back slam to make 99-87.

The Celtics defended well on the ensuing play, but Antetokounmpo fought through Grant Williams to grab the rebound and throw down a dunk. That put the Bucks ahead 101-87 with 2:10 left, and coach Udoka decided it was time to empty the bench.

Tatum finished with a team-high 21 points, but it came on 6/18 shooting, despite going 4/9 from beyond the arc. He earned five points at the charity stripe, but missed three other free throws. Tatum also distributed six assists, grabbed six rebounds, and had a pair of steals.

No one else on Boston scored more than 12 points. As a team, the Celtics were held to 33.3 percent shooting from the field and went 18/50 (36 percent) from long range. They also produced just 20 points in the paint and committed 18 turnovers. Those turnovers led to 27 points for the Bucks compared to Boston converting 14 turnovers from the visitors into only six points.

As exhausting as it is, to score against Milwaukee's length, they need to stay active, maintaining player and ball movement to keep the Bucks' defense in rotation and create open, in-rhythm shots. The examples highlighted from the fourth quarter are possessions they can point to for how they have to attack the Bucks at that end of the floor.

Boston defended Antetokounmpo effectively. Horford did an outstanding job against him, and while understanding slowing him down requires a team effort, Grant Williams also guarded him well at the point of attack. The former league MVP registered 24 points but went 9/25. He took 11 free throws, but only six of his points came from there.

Antetokounmpo paired his 24 points with a terrific job facilitating for his teammates, finding them for a game-high 12 assists. He also corralled 13 rebounds, more than anyone else on either side, and had two blocks.

Holiday led all scorers with 25 points on 8/20 shooting, including going 3/5 on threes. He also grabbed ten rebounds, had five assists, and three steals in Milwaukee's Game 1 win.

Up Next

Game 2 between the Celtics and Bucks tips off Tuesday night at 7:00 ET. Inside The Celtics will have content related to the game coming out before, during, and after. And follow @BobbyKrivitsky on Twitter for updates and analysis from pregame to post.

Further Reading

What Stands Out About Celtics-Bucks Second-Round Schedule

Report: Khris Middleton Expected to Miss Entire Second-Round Series vs. Celtics

Ime Udoka Provides Update on Jaylen Brown's Hamstring Tightness

Bucks Eliminate Bulls, Setting Up Second-Round Series vs. Celtics

As Robert Williams Works to Get Back to Full Strength, He Says There's 'No pain at all. Knee is responding well'

Celtics Discuss Decision not to Avoid the Nets: 'I'm assuming a road to the championship is never easy'

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Bobby Krivitsky
BOBBY KRIVITSKY

Bobby Krivitsky's experiences include covering the NBA as a credentialed reporter for Basketball Insiders. He's also a national sports talk host for SportsMap Radio, a network airing on 96 radio stations throughout the country. Additionally, he was a major-market host, update anchor, and producer for IMG Audio, and he worked for Bleacher Report as an NFL and NBA columnist.

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