Game ID: 22300228
Milwaukee Bucks @ Boston Celtics
Wednesday, November 22, 2023 at 7:30 PM ET
TD Garden, Boston, MA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
BOS 29 38 27 25 119MIL 17 36 26 37 116
BOS vs MIL ScoutingBOS vs MIL Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
BOS availability going into 11/15 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 10 since 10/25, out tonight
BACK White back 11/08 after 2, 30 min since (91% of 33)
BACK Brissett back 11/10 after 2, 6 min since (60% of 10)
BOS availability going into 11/17 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 11 since 10/25, out tonight
OUT Brissett missed 2 since 11/13, out tonight
BACK White back 11/08 after 2, 31 min since (95% of 33)
BOS availability going into 11/19 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 12 since 10/25, returns tonight: 5 min (47% of 11)
OUT Brissett missed 3 since 11/13, out tonight
BOS availability going into 11/20 · back-to-backOUT Kornet missed 2 since 11/17, returns tonight: 18 min (126% of 15)
OUT Brissett missed 4 since 11/13, returns tonight: 17 min (166% of 10)
BACK Queta back 11/19 after 12, 5 min since (47% of 11)
BOS availability going into 11/22 · 1 day's restBACK Kornet back 11/20 after 2, 18 min since (126% of 15)
BACK Queta back 11/19 after 12, 5 min since (47% of 11)
BACK Brissett back 11/20 after 4, 17 min since (166% of 10)
NEW Porziņģis 29 to 34 min over the last 4
NEW Hauser 21 to 28 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 11/24 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 2 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK Kornet back 11/20 after 2, 18 min since (126% of 15)
BACK Brissett back 11/20 after 4, 17 min since (166% of 10)
NEW Hauser 21 to 27 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 11/26 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 3 since 11/20, returns tonight: 15 min (136% of 11)
BACK Kornet back 11/20 after 2, 22 min since (147% of 15)
BACK Brissett back 11/20 after 4, 11 min since (108% of 10)
BOS availability going into 11/28 · 1 day's restOUT Holiday missed 2 since 11/24, returns tonight: 33 min (98% of 34)
BACK Kornet back 11/20 after 2, 18 min since (119% of 15)
BACK Queta back 11/19 after 12, 10 min since (92% of 11)
BACK Brissett back 11/20 after 4, 11 min since (108% of 10)
NEW Hauser 21 to 27 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 12/01 · 2 days' restOUT Porziņģis missed 2 since 11/26, out tonight
OUT Brissett missed 2 since 11/26, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 11/28 after 2, 33 min since (98% of 34)
BACK Kornet back 11/20 after 2, 18 min since (122% of 15)
BACK Queta back 11/26 after 3, 15 min since (136% of 11)
NEW Hauser 21 to 27 min over the last 5
MIL availability going into 11/15 · 1 day's restBACK Lillard back 11/13 after 2, 32 min since (90% of 36)
BACK Green back 11/11 after 4, 10 min since (86% of 11)
BACK Jackson Jr. back 11/08 after 2, 9 min since (87% of 10)
NEW Crowder 22 to 28 min over the last 4
NEW Payne 15 to 23 min over the last 5
NEW Beauchamp 12 to 19 min over the last 5
MIL availability going into 11/17 · 1 day's restOUT Crowder missed 2 since 11/13, out tonight
BACK Lillard back 11/13 after 2, 31 min since (88% of 36)
BACK Green back 11/11 after 4, 8 min since (76% of 11)
BACK Jackson Jr. back 11/08 after 2, 10 min since (102% of 10)
NEW Payne 15 to 23 min over the last 5
NEW Beauchamp 12 to 18 min over the last 5
MIL availability going into 11/18 · back-to-backOUT Crowder missed 3 since 11/13, out tonight
BACK Lillard back 11/13 after 2, 31 min since (88% of 36)
BACK Green back 11/11 after 4, 6 min since (59% of 11)
NEW Payne 15 to 22 min over the last 5
MIL availability going into 11/20 · 1 day's restOUT Crowder missed 4 since 11/13, out tonight
OUT Beauchamp missed 2 since 11/17, out tonight
BACK Lillard back 11/13 after 2, 33 min since (92% of 36)
BACK Green back 11/11 after 4, 8 min since (70% of 11)
MIL availability going into 11/22 · 1 day's restOUT Crowder missed 5 since 11/13, out tonight
OUT Beauchamp missed 3 since 11/17, returns tonight: 22 min (184% of 12)
BACK Lillard back 11/13 after 2, 33 min since (93% of 36)
NEW Connaughton 22 to 29 min over the last 5
MIL availability going into 11/24 · 1 day's restOUT Crowder missed 6 since 11/13, out tonight
BACK Beauchamp back 11/22 after 3, 22 min since (184% of 12)
MIL availability going into 11/26 · 1 day's restOUT Crowder missed 7 since 11/13, out tonight
BACK Beauchamp back 11/22 after 3, 18 min since (148% of 12)
NEW Connaughton 22 to 28 min over the last 5
MIL availability going into 11/28 · 1 day's restOUT Crowder missed 8 since 11/13, out tonight
BACK Beauchamp back 11/22 after 3, 15 min since (125% of 12)
MIL availability going into 11/30 · 1 day's restOUT Crowder missed 9 since 11/13, out tonight
BACK Beauchamp back 11/22 after 3, 13 min since (113% of 12)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 106, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 19 free throws a game; Tatum at 29 and Porziņģis at 20 a game. One day's rest. Milwaukee comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 130 a night and allowing 115, shooting 53 percent and 41 from three, 22 free throws a game; Antetokounmpo at 33 and Lillard at 25 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Crowder (5 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 106 a night to Milwaukee's 115 and the arc, Milwaukee at 41 percent from three to Boston's 37. Call it Boston 117, Milwaukee 114, Milwaukee keeping it close.
11/15 @ PHI 117-107 — BOS notes
BOS won 117-107. BOS shot 48% (42 of 88) to PHI's 46%, 18 of 50 from three. Tatum led with 29 (10 of 23, 4 of 10 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); White added 27, Holiday 18. The hinge was Q1, 37-22: from level to 15 ahead. BOS trailed 57-58 at the half and won the second half 60-49.
11/17 @ TOR 108-105 — BOS notes
BOS won 108-105. BOS shot 46% (42 of 92) to TOR's 48%, 16 of 46 from three. Brown led with 23 (9 of 14, 3 of 5 from three); Tatum added 17, Porziņģis 14. The hinge was Q2, 39-17: BOS came in trailing by 6 and left it ahead by 16.
11/19 @ MEM 102-100 — BOS notes
BOS won 102-100. BOS shot 45% (35 of 77) to MEM's 39%, 12 of 31 from three, and went to the line 25 times to MEM's 10 — 20 points from the stripe to their 9. BOS turned it over 17 times to MEM's 9. Porziņģis led with 26 (9 of 13, 0 of 3 from three, 8 of 9 at the line); Tatum added 20, Hauser 15. The hinge was Q2, 30-26: BOS came in trailing by 1 and left it ahead by 3. Hauser was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
11/20 @ CHA 118-121 — BOS notes
BOS lost 118-121 in 1 overtime. BOS shot 43% (42 of 97) to CHA's 44%, 16 of 50 from three, and went to the line 28 times to CHA's 17 — 18 points from the stripe to their 16. Tatum led with 45 (15 of 28, 7 of 15 from three, 8 of 10 at the line); Pritchard added 21, Porziņģis 17. Q1 was theirs, 31-25, but the other 4 periods went 96-87 against them. They led by as many as 18. Porziņģis's -26 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/22 vs MIL 119-116 — BOS notes
BOS won 119-116. BOS shot 52% (44 of 84) to MIL's 45%, 17 of 42 from three. BOS turned it over 15 times to MIL's 9, and MIL turned those into 9 steals. Brown led with 26 (10 of 16, 3 of 5 from three); Tatum added 23, Porziņģis 21. The hinge was Q1, 29-17: from level to 12 ahead, and the lead reached 21. Hauser was the night's best plus/minus at +10.
11/24 @ ORL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Orlando comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 107, shooting 48 percent and 34 from three, 29 free throws a game; Banchero at 20 and F. Wagner at 19 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Carter Jr. (10 straight), Fultz (7 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 110, shooting 47 percent and 36 from three, 20 free throws a game; Tatum at 27 and Porziņģis at 20 a game. One day's rest.
So: Orlando wins, and the game turns on the line, where Orlando takes 29 free throws a game to Boston's 20. Call it Orlando 112, Boston 110, Boston keeping it close.
11/26 vs ATL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 111, shooting 46 percent and 34 from three, 23 free throws a game; Tatum at 26 and Brown at 18 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest. Atlanta comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 133 a night and allowing 130, shooting 51 percent and 41 from three, 27 free throws a game; Young at 29 and Bogdanović at 19 a game. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 111 a night to Atlanta's 130 and the arc, Atlanta at 41 percent from three to Boston's 34. Call it Boston 121, Atlanta 117, Atlanta keeping it close.
11/28 vs CHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 111, shooting 45 percent and 33 from three, 25 free throws a game; Tatum at 30 and Porziņģis at 18 a game. Without Holiday (2 straight). One day's rest. Chicago comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 104 a night and allowing 114, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 19 free throws a game; DeRozan at 22 and LaVine at 20 a game. That is 4 straight losses. One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the line, where Boston takes 25 free throws a game to Chicago's 19 and the arc, Chicago at 37 percent from three to Boston's 33. Call it Boston 114, Chicago 106.
12/01 vs PHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 110, shooting 47 percent and 34 from three, 23 free throws a game; Tatum at 30 and Brown at 22 a game. Without Porziņģis (2 straight). 2 days' rest. Philadelphia comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 115, shooting 46 percent and 36 from three, 31 free throws a game; Embiid at 32 and Maxey at 28 a game. Without Oubre Jr. (10 straight), House Jr. (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the line, where Philadelphia takes 31 free throws a game to Boston's 23. Call it Boston 116, Philadelphia 113, Philadelphia keeping it close.
11/15 @ TOR 128-112 — MIL notes
MIL won 128-112. MIL shot 52% (44 of 85) to TOR's 40%, 20 of 39 from three, and got to the line 21 times to TOR's 31. The glass went 41-55 against them. Lillard led with 37 (9 of 18, 4 of 10 from three, 15 of 16 at the line); Beasley added 30, Portis 18. The hinge was Q1, 36-21: from level to 15 ahead, and the lead reached 33. Beasley was the night's best plus/minus at +34.
11/17 @ CHA 130-99 — MIL notes
MIL won 130-99. MIL shot 55% (49 of 89) to CHA's 41%, 22 of 45 from three, and got to the line 13 times to CHA's 22. Lillard led with 27 (9 of 18, 5 of 10 from three); Beasley added 20, G. Antetokounmpo 16. The hinge was Q4, 38-18: a lead of 11 became 31. Beasley was the night's best plus/minus at +31.
11/18 vs DAL 132-125 — MIL notes
MIL won 132-125. MIL shot 52% (49 of 94) to DAL's 50%, 17 of 45 from three, and went to the line 20 times to DAL's 10 — 17 points from the stripe to their 7. MIL turned it over 6 times to DAL's 12. Antetokounmpo led with 40 (18 of 26, 1 of 3 from three); Lillard added 27, Connaughton 16. The hinge was Q4, 43-27: MIL came in trailing by 9 and left it ahead by 7. Connaughton was the night's best plus/minus at +22.
11/20 @ WAS 142-129 — MIL notes
MIL won 142-129. MIL shot 59% (55 of 94) to WAS's 56%, 11 of 29 from three, and went to the line 28 times to WAS's 11 — 21 points from the stripe to their 9. MIL turned it over 13 times to WAS's 4. The glass went 55-26 for them. Antetokounmpo led with 42 (20 of 23, 2 of 6 at the line); Lillard added 22, Middleton 18. The hinge was Q4, 38-27: a lead of 2 became 13, and the lead reached 18. Middleton was the night's best plus/minus at +23.
11/22 @ BOS 116-119 — MIL notes
MIL lost 116-119. MIL took 17 more shots (101 to 84), fed by 13 offensive rebounds, but shot 45% to BOS's 52%, 13 of 34 from three. MIL turned it over 9 times to BOS's 15. Lopez led with 28 (12 of 18, 2 of 5 from three); Lillard added 27, Antetokounmpo 21. Q4 was theirs, 37-25, the deficit cut from 15 to 3, but the other 3 periods went 94-79 against them. Payne's -12 in 10 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/24 vs WAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Milwaukee comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 130 a night and allowing 117, shooting 52 percent and 43 from three, 20 free throws a game; Antetokounmpo at 30 and Lillard at 28 a game. Without Crowder (6 straight). One day's rest. Washington comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 124, shooting 49 percent and 35 from three, 16 free throws a game; Kuzma at 25 and Poole at 18 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 11 a night. One day's rest.
So: Milwaukee wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Milwaukee has been plus-3 a night and Washington minus-11 and the arc, Milwaukee at 43 percent from three to Washington's 35. Call it Milwaukee 126, Washington 114, Milwaukee by 12.
11/26 vs POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Milwaukee comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 130 a night and allowing 120, shooting 52 percent and 39 from three, 22 free throws a game; Antetokounmpo at 30 and Lillard at 27 a game. It has won the glass by 7 a night. Without Crowder (7 straight). One day's rest. Portland comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 102 a night and allowing 115, shooting 43 percent and 35 from three, 18 free throws a game; Grant at 22 and Ayton at 13 a game. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. Without Simons (14 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Milwaukee wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Milwaukee has been plus-7 a night and Portland minus-8 and the turnovers, Portland giving it away 15 times a game to Milwaukee's 10. Call it Milwaukee 121, Portland 110, Milwaukee by 11.
11/28 @ MIA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Miami comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 102, shooting 46 percent and 40 from three, 20 free throws a game; Adebayo at 23 and Butler III at 18 a game. Without Herro (9 straight), Robinson (2 straight). 2 days' rest. Milwaukee comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 121, shooting 49 percent and 35 from three, 26 free throws a game; Antetokounmpo at 33 and Lillard at 28 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without Crowder (8 straight). One day's rest.
So: Miami wins, and the game turns on the defense, Miami allowing 102 a night to Milwaukee's 121 and the glass, where Milwaukee has been plus-8 a night and Miami plus-0. Call it Miami 115, Milwaukee 113, Milwaukee keeping it close.
11/30 @ CHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Chicago comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 103 a night and allowing 119, shooting 45 percent and 36 from three, 18 free throws a game; DeRozan at 21 and White at 20 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. One day's rest. Milwaukee comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 120, shooting 50 percent and 35 from three, 27 free throws a game; Antetokounmpo at 32 and Lillard at 29 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 12 a night. Without Crowder (9 straight). One day's rest.
So: Milwaukee wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Milwaukee has been plus-12 a night and Chicago minus-6 and the line, where Milwaukee takes 27 free throws a game to Chicago's 18. Call it Milwaukee 119, Chicago 113.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
BOSAH A. Horford
DW D. White
JB J. Brown
JH J. Holiday
JT J. Tatum
KP K. Porziņģis
PP P. Pritchard
PO Porzingis
SH S. Hauser
MILAJ A. Jackson Jr.
BL B. Lopez
BP B. Portis
CP C. Payne
DL D. Lillard
GA G. Antetokounmpo
KM K. Middleton
MB M. Beasley
MB M. Beauchamp
PC P. Connaughton
BOS/MIL the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Tatum shakes off illness, helps Celtics slow Giannis and beat fellow East power Bucks 119-116
BOSTON -- — Jayson Tatum shook off an illness to have 23 points and 11 rebounds, carrying the Boston Celtics over the Milwaukee Bucks 119-116 on Wednesday night in an early showdown of top Eastern Conference teams.
Jaylen Brown had 26 points and eight assists for Boston, which improved the NBA's best record to 12-3. Kristaps Porzingis added 21 points and Derrick White scored 13.
“I thought it was great. Obviously, the fans and everyone in the building knew this was No. 1 and No. 2 seed playing against each other, and that just adds more fuel to the atmosphere,” Porzingis said. “The energy was there. We played hard and they made a good push at the end and almost made a comeback, but we held strong.”
The Celtics opened a 21-point lead in the first half and never trailed. They held that double-digit edge until the Bucks made a late charge in the final two minutes, slicing it to 114-111 before Tatum hit three free throws in the closing 21.2 seconds.
Brook Lopez led Milwaukee (10-5) with 28 points. Damian Lillard had 27 points, five rebounds and five assists, but Giannis Antetokounmpo was limited to 21 points after scoring at least 40 in his last two games.
“When you miss a lot of shots, usually it's what the opposing team is doing," Lillard said of the slow start. ‘When you look at how we played, we just didn’t execute well. We didn't have good pace to our offense, we didn't make extra passes, we didn't screen for each other; a lot of things we have to do."
The Bucks, who scored 130 points or more in their last three games, had a five-game winning streak halted.
Tatum started despite being listed as questionable after scoring a season-high 45 points in an overtime loss at Charlotte in the last game.
The Celtics led 67-53 at halftime after shooting a sizzling 58.1%, including 12 of 23 from 3-point range.
“We were making great plays and executing for each other and we had our defensive connectivity," Boston coach Joe Mazzulla said.
They broke in front 10-0 and pushed it to 21-8 before opening a 54-33 edge on Brown’s three-point play midway through the second quarter.
Antetokounmpo was pulled by first-year coach Adrian Griffin after a dibbling violation. The two appeared to have words while the star was leaning against the scorer’s table facing the court, where he remained before checking back in on the next stoppage of play.
The teams made some of the biggest additions during the offseason, looking for supremacy in the East.
In late June, the Celtics acquired Porzingis in a blockbuster three-team deal that sent one of its longtime floor leaders, Marcus Smart , to Memphis.
The Bucks later added Lillard on Sept. 27, months after he requested a trade out of Portland. Milwaukee traded Jrue Holiday in that deal, and the Celtics acquired him from the Trail Blazers four days later.
Those players got involved right away, too, when Holiday picked up Lillard defensively on Milwaukee’s first possession and Porzingis challenged Antetokounmpo’s shot that caromed off the backboard on his initial drive to the basket.
“We knew neither one of us was going to win the championship tonight,” Lillard said of the energy in the building. “The thing that made it a high-level game is they were the first team in the East and we were the second. The winner walks away No. 1 right now, which means nothing. A lot of high-level players on their team, a lot of high-level on ours.”
UP NEXT
Bucks: Host the Wizards in an In-Season tournament game on Friday night.
Celtics: At the Magic in an In-Season tourney game on Friday afternoon.