The Celtics visit the Milwaukee Bucks for the 4th and final game between these two teams this season. The Celtics won the first meeting 119-116 on November 22 in Boston. They lost the second game 135-102 on January 11 in Milwaukee. They won the third game 122-119 in Boston on March 20. The Celtics won the series 2-1 last season. They won on Christmas Day in Boston and 1 game in Milwaukee and they lost one game in Milwaukee.
The Celtics remain in first place in the East and first place overall in the league. They are an incredible 15 games ahead of 2nd place Milwaukee, 16 games ahead of 3rd place Orlando, 16 games ahead of both 4th place New York, 16.5 games ahead of 5th place Cleveland, and 17.5 games ahead of 6th place Indiana. They are 27-13 on the road and 8-2 in their last 10 games. They are 39-9 against Eastern Conference teams and have won their last 5 games.
The Bucks are 2nd in the East, 15 games behind 1st place Boston, 1 game ahead of 3rd place Orlando, 1 game ahead of 4th place New York, 1.5 games ahead of 5th place Cleveland and 3.5 games ahead of 6th place Indiana. They are 29-11 at home and 3-7 in their last 10 games. They are 32-17 against Eastern Conference opponents. They have lost their last 4 games .
The Celtics just finished a 3 game home standThey beat the Thunder 135-100 in the first game back at home after a 6 game road trip and they edged out the Kings 101-100, with the reserves playing the entire 4th quarter against the Kings starters. In the final game of the home stand, they beat Portland 124-107. After this game in Milwaukee, the Celtics will finish the season at home against New York, Charlotte and Washington.
The Bucks are playing in the 4th game of a 5 game home stand. They haven’t had much luck so far in the first 3 games, losing to Memphis 111-101, Toronto 117-111, and New York 122-109. They have one more game at home against Orlando before finishing the season on the road at Oklahoma City and Orlando. This is the 1st of back to back games, hosting Orlando on Wednesday. With the Bucks just one game ahead of both Orlando and New York, this game and Wednesday’s games are very important for them as 2 losses could drop them all the way to 4th place.
For the Celtics, Jayson Tatum, who missed Sunday’s game with a right knee contusion is not on the injury list at this time. Al Horford is out with a left big toe sprain. Kristaps Porzingis is out due to right hamstring injury management. We will see a lot of Xavier Tillman and Luke Kornet. Neemias Queta has been signed to the 15th roster spot. If both Al and KP are out, he may be with the team for this game, but I would guess that he would remain with Maine for their Finals game rather than play in a regular season game with little meaning.
For the Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo is questionable with left hamstring tendinopathy. Khris Middleton is probable due to a right quadriceps contusion. Patrick Beverley missed the last 3 games due to a sprained right ankle but is listed as probable for this game. Mar Jon Beauchamp is out due to an ankle sprain. 2 Way player Jaylin Galloway is out with an ankle injury. If Giannis can’t play, former Celtic, Jay Crowder, will likely get the start in his place.
Probable Celtics Starters
Celtics Reserves
Oshae Brissett
Sam Hauser
Al Horford
Luke Kornet
Svi Mykhailiuk
Payton Pritchard
Jordan Walsh
Jaden Springer
Xavier Tillman
Neemias Queta
2 Way Players
JD Davison
Drew Peterson
Injuries/Out
Al Horford (toe) out
Kristaps Porzingis (hamstring) out
Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla
Probable Bucks Starters
Bucks Reserves
Thanasis Antetokounmpo
Pat Connaughton
Jae Crowder
Danilo Gallinari
AJ Green
Andre Jackson, Jr
Chris Livingston
Bobby Portis, Jr
Two Way Players
Jaylin Galloway
Ryan Rollins
TyTy Washington, Jr
Injuries/Out
Mar Jon Beauchamp (ankle) out
Jaylin Galloway (ankle) out
Patrick Beverley (ankle) probable
Khris Middleton (quad) probable
Giannis Antetokounmpo (hamstring) questionable
Head Coach
Doc Rivers
Key Matchups
Jayson Tatum vs Giannis Antetokounmpo
Giannis Antetokounmpo is the Bucks’ best player and possibly the league’s best player. He is averaging 30.7 points, 11.6 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 1.1 blocks and 1.2 steals per game. He is shooting 61.1% from the field but just 27.4% from beyond the arc. In the previous games against the Celtics, he averaged 22.5 points, 12.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 1.5 steals. He shot 51.5% from the field and no 3 pointers. You can’t stop Giannis, but you can try to slow him down.
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Jrue Holiday
Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images
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Damian Lillard
Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images
Jrue Holiday vs Damian Lillard
Lillard is averaging 24.5 points, 4.4 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 1.0 steals per game. He is shooting 42.5% from the field and 35.5% from beyond the arc. In the first 3 games against the Celtics, Lillard averaged 26.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 5 assists and 1 steal. He shot 49.1% from the field and 42.9% from beyond the arc. The Celtics need to play Lillard tightly on defense to limit his production since he is the biggest threat other than Antetokounmpo. Hopefully playing his former team, and the guy that replaced him, will give Holiday added incentive to play well to beat them.
Honorable Mention
Jaylen Brown vs Khris Middleton
Middleton is averaging 15 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per game. He is shooting 49% from the field and 38% from beyond the arc. Middleton always seems to get up for Celtics games and is a verified Celtics killer. In the first 3 games against the Celtics, Middleton averaged 13 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 6.7 assists. He shot 41.2% from the field and 38.5% from beyond the arc.
Keys to the Game
Defense – Defense is always the biggest key to winning. Defense really does win championships. The Celtics are 2nd with a defensive rating of 110.4. The Bucks are 19th with a defensive rating of 115.2. In their January loss to the Bucks, the Celtics allowed the Bucks to shoot 56.5% from the field and 42.9% from beyond the arc. They simply must do a better job on defense in this game. The Celtics must work harder than the Bucks on defense and keep their focus on the defensive end so as not to allow any easy baskets for the Bucks.
Rebound – Next to defense, rebounding is always a big key to winning. The key to rebounding is effort and focus. When the Celtics increase their rebounding effort, it usually improves their play in other areas as well. The Bucks are 9th with 44.3 rebounds per game while the Celtics are 2nd with 46.5 rebounds per game. In their loss to the Bucks in January, the Celtics were out-rebounded 54-31, which shows a lack of effort. As Pat Riley once said, ”No rebounds, no rings.” The Celtics must work harder than the Bucks to pull down rebounds if they want to win this game.
Maximum Effort for 48 Minutes – The Celtics are facing their closest rival in the Eastern Conference. They will likely meet them in the playoffs at some point. The Celtics effort in their loss in Milwaukee left much to be desired and they can’t make that mistake again in this one. The circumstances are similar going into the game. Going into that last game at Milwaukee, the Bucks had lost 4 of their last 5 games and now they have lost 6 of their last 7 games. The Celtics were on a 6 game win streak before that game and are now on a 5 game win streak while the Bucks have lost 4 straight. The Celtics have to give maximum effort the entire game and not allow the Bucks to play harder than them.
Stay Focused – A lack of focus can explain a lot of the Celtics problems when they struggle. At times, the Celtics lose focus and struggle to hit shots that they would usually make. They sometimes take questionable shots, miss some layups and stop moving the ball, which can also be attributed to a lack of focus. They also miss free throws in games where they lack focus. When they lose focus on offense, they also lose focus on defense and miss assignments and allow their opponent open shots on the perimeter and easy shots inside. They must stay focused on playing the right way.
X-Factors
Desperation vs Complacency – The Bucks are just 1 game ahead of both Orlando and New York with 4 games remaining. Two of those games are against the Magic, who are just 1 game behind them and could overtake them for the 2nd seed. If they don’t show some desperation, they have no heart. On the other hand, the Celtics have the best record in the league locked up and really have nothing record wise to play for. But they shouldn’t let complacency slip in. They need to play to win to keep their edge going into the playoffs.
Officiating – The officiating can always be an x-factor. Some referees call the game tight and others let them play. Some favor the home team and others call it evenly. Some refs just seem to have an agenda that doesn’t fit the play on the court. And sometimes the refs are simply atrocious. Giannis seems to always get more than his share of calls as he plows through players on his way to the hoop, leaving bodies in his wake. He is 2nd only to Embiid with 10.8 free throws attempted per game. The Celtics have to play through however the refs call the game, whether it is tight or they let them play or they make terrible calls. The Celtics can’t allow bad calls or no calls to take away their focus on the game.
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