Tatum scores 41. Celtics easily handle Bucks
BOSTON (AP) — Jaylen Brown He made his fourth quarter shots. Then he hit his shots in the fourth quarter. Bucks Star Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Brown scored 13 of his 29 points during the fourth quarter. Jayson Tatum Scored 41 points for Boston Sunday in order to help them beat Milwaukee 139-182 in a matchup with the two top teams in the NBA.
Tatum scored 20 points in the third quarter. The Celtics converted a one point lead into a 100 to 86 advantage. In the fourth quarter, Brown was the one to take over. He contributed on defense with a pick which sent Antetokounmpo to a landing spot. Brown bounced back and shoved Brown in his back.
“I thought I was playing pretty physical defense, nothing dirty. It seemed like it was a clean play,” Brown said. “Maybe he was a little but frustrated. He got up and threw an elbow at me, for whatever reason.”
Antetokounmpo received a technical foul after some back-and-forth jawing. He was then sent to the bench. The teams played the final 3:41 without any further incidents.
“There’s a difference between trying to be a tough guy and letting your opponent know that I’m not backing down, I’m not afraid of any challenge or any matchup whatsoever,” Brown said. “In that moment I was just letting him know that.”
Antetokounmpo was hurt in a fall on Friday night, but was cleared to play. He scored 27 points and grabbed nine rebounds. Asked about his team’s ability to limit the damage done by Antetokounmpo, Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said, “Limiting’s crazy. He had 27.”
“He’s a great player,” he said, “and you’ve got to be disciplined against him.”
Jrue Holiday Milwaukee scored 23 goals, losing its third straight game. The Celtics have had a difficult time lately. They lost five of six games before winning back to back.
Boston (24-10) still holds the best record in league, followed closely by Milwaukee (22-11).
“Obviously, we lost to them last year in the playoffs and we’ve had battles with them since I’ve gotten to Milwaukee,” said Bucks forward Pat Connaughton. “So they’re two teams that are very familiar with each other.”
“But it’s also December 25th. The NBA season is a long season, and we will be a much better basketball team by the end of this year than we are right now,” he said. “And I’m sure they will be, too.”
The Celtics led 10 to 11 in the first quarter, and 11 by the end of the second. Antetokounmpo poured back-to-back 3-pointers from 3-point range, and Jayson Tatum got in the middle.
Before, their lead was just 62-61. Bobby Portis Brown fouled on a desperate 3-pointer at halftime buzzer. Brown missed all three of his free throws. He missed one in the third quarter, before hitting the second. He was 2 for 6.
Boston won the third game, taking a lead of double-digits that Milwaukee was unable to match.
The teams met in the second round of last year’s Eastern Conference playoffs, and the Celtics won in seven games en route to the NBA Finals. It’s their first meeting since then. The Bucks beat Boston by 117 points last Christmas in Milwaukee.
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Tatum scores 41, Celtics make statement easily handling Bucks Original version: NBCSports.com