MILWAUKEE — Jayson Tatum scored 40 points, Jaylen Brown added 30 and the Boston Celtics defeated the NBA-leading Milwaukee Bucks 140-99 on Thursday night.
The Celtics (53-24) shot 22 of 43 from 3-point range and moved within two games ahead of the Bucks (55-22) in the Eastern Conference standings. The Celtics won the season series with the Bucks 2-1, which would give Boston the tiebreak if both teams finish on the same record.
Boston’s performance in those three games against Milwaukee should give the Celtics plenty of confidence that they could knock out the Bucks again when they meet in the postseason. The Celtics beat the Bucks in seven games in last season’s East semifinals.
The Celtics defeated the Bucks 139-118 on Christmas Day in Boston and lost 131-125 in overtime on February 14. The Celtics didn’t play Brown, Tatum, Marcus Smart or Al Horford in this overtime loss.
Milwaukee has scored a hit both on floor and overall. Bucks forward Khris Middleton left the game midway through the third quarter after elbowing Brown in the face. The play resulted in a charge foul on Brown and resulted in Middleton receiving stitches in his upper lip.
Boston built a 114-74 lead over three periods, resulting in most of both teams’ starters sitting out the entire fourth quarter.
Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 24 points.
It was the Bucks’ most one-sided loss this season. They fell at Memphis on December 15, 142-101.
The Bucks played a night after a 149-136 win in Indiana in which they shot a season-high 62.4% from the floor, with Jrue Holiday on 51 points and Antetokounmpo on 38 points, 17 rebounds and 12 assists. This was the first time an NBA team had one player with at least 50 points and another triple-double with at least 35 points in the same game.
Milwaukee found it a little tougher on Thursday.
Antetokounmpo shot just 11 of 27, including 0 for 5 from 3-point range. Holiday started his night with a pocketed 3-pointer but went the rest of the way as 1 of 7 and finished with just six points.
After nine lead changes and five draws in the opening 8½ minutes of the game, the Celtics took control by going 29-9 in the final more than seven minutes. Boston capped that sprint with 13 points in a row.
Boston didn’t let up for the rest of the night.
Milwaukee’s Thanasis Antetokounmpo was ejected 1:25 before the headbutt on Boston’s Blake Griffin. The headbutt came after Griffin committed a flagrant 1 foul on Antetokounmpo.
TIP INS
Celtics: Boston beat Milwaukee 41-21 in the second third for the season’s highest second quarter score. … Payton Pritchard didn’t play due to pain in his left heel.
Bucks: Middleton and Joe Ingles returned after sitting out the Bucks’ win in Indiana. Since Middleton and Ingles both returned from knee injuries earlier this season, the Bucks have generally avoided playing them on back-to-back nights. … Meyers Leonard missed a seventh straight game with a sore left calf.
NEXT
Celtics: to host Friday’s Utah Jazz. In their only previous game this season, the Celtics lost 118-117 on March 18 in Utah.
Bucks: hosts the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday. The Bucks are 2-1 against the 76ers this season, including a 133-130 home loss on March 4 that ended Milwaukee’s 16-game winning streak. ——
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