In a masterful performance in defense, the Milwaukee Bucks maintained the Boston Celtics to a 90.1 offensive rating on the way to a 1-0 lead in the series after a 101-89 lead.
With four turns in the first five minutes of the match, the Bucks played carelessly from the first round, carried over to the start. Milwaukee struggled 10-0 to close the quarter, but led 27-24. The Bucks looked even more restrained in the second period as the Celtics looked a little hesitant and the Milwaukee found a 56-46 lead behind a 50% depth shot. Bucks looked like they might have trouble leaving Janice with four fouls and three minutes left, but they even managed to extend their lead from now on to maintain a 78-70 lead to start the fourth. That result was maintained, and then a little while Milwaukee’s defense held back against Boston and Name Udoka waved the white flag two minutes to go.
Three points
Janice hugged the playmakers. In the first half, while having trouble finding the way under the edge (only 4-13), he took advantage of his isolation against the bigger defenders of the Celtics and managed to break the defense and his shooters paid off. He made a number of sterling passes and slowed down after the start of the match. Although he struggled with the field as a whole, only 9-25 of the field, he took advantage of inconsistencies and found his teammates when needed. Also thanks to Mike Budenholzer, who kept him on the road for at least 42 minutes, if not for his foul problem, and Bucks won this one with at least two minutes to go.
Milwaukee reversed the turnover scenario. The Bucks started the game with seven turns, giving the Celtics plenty of shots and generally seemed unable to defend the ball properly. This made the development of the late stages of this game so impressive, as they finished only 14 compared to 18 in Boston. More importantly, they scored 27 points from Boston’s blunders, while the Celtics scored just six. What a job the team has returned to in the last few quarters of this.
Jrue Holiday delivered. His shot was not too sharp in the first half, but he solidified himself in the second half, crashing into the Boston defenders and making his way to the edge. In defense, he managed to get into the face of Boston in the second half, forcing speed and hard shots, but the rough thing for Celtics fans is that I did not even think he was the best in this area. His dunk 3-5 from deep was critical, and his 6-6 from the line, including a few key delays, was covertly important.
Bonus bits
- Milwaukee opened with Janice guarding Jaylan Brown, Wes Matthews of Jason Tatum and Jrou Holiday of Marcus Smart.
- It was a nice start to see Jro Holiday see his first two threes fall.
- Grayson Allen was the first substitute for Jro Holiday and was tied with Marcus Smart to begin.
- After Jaylan Brown received a rebound right on Janice’s head, he showed really impressive composure, taking Al Horford to the other side and creating an absurd open triple for Portis at the top of the rainbow with a beautiful pass.
- Can you imagine being Jason Tatum in the first period and passing Brooke Lopez in the corner to drive to the edge, just to see Janice stretch her massive arms to the edge?
- Bobby Portis made a really impressive pass in the second quarter, catching the ball from a slingshot with one hand of Janice and immediately directed it to Pat Conauton in a three-pointer.
- With a bloodthirsty audience at TD Garden, Janice knocking down his first four free throws was an encouraging, calming development.
- Grayson Allen was quite impressive in his stay in this game with a real test against the playoffs, scoring his threes and most amazingly, he pulled Robert Williams III out of the dribble and hit a floating against him. He also did a great job digging without leaving his man too much in the perimeter and imposing some thefts. Also, a huge credit to him that he was an absolute pest in defense with three thefts.
- Milwaukee missed a three-pointer in the third quarter (0-8), but still managed to lose the period by only two.
- If you want a comparison of role players in this, there was a perfect example in the fourth quarter when Peyton Pritchard rattled an open three after a miscommunication in defense, and on the other hand Janice hit Portis in the corner for a three that exploded.
- This may be Janice’s typical game now … he bounces off the backgammon and kicks him home.
Support our site! | BreakingT | ESPN + | ESPN + 30 for 30 | fuboTV | Disney +
Add Comment