Giannis Drops 32 to Lead Bucks Past Kemba Walker, Celtics for 5th Straight Win

Morry Gash/Associated Press

The Milwaukee Bucks won their fifth game in a row Thursday, beating the Boston Celtics 128-123 at home at Fiserv Forum.

Giannis Antetokounmpo posted his 35th double-double of the season to move ahead of Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond for the league lead.

The Bucks and Celtics have now split their season series after Boston prevailed 116-105 on Oct. 30. The result of their matchup may not have playoff implications, though, since Milwaukee's lead on the Celtics now stands at 8.5 games. Their final two meetings are March 12 and April 5.

The Celtics have dropped five of their last seven games.

Jayson Tatum returned to the lineup after missing the team's 116-103 loss to the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday, but Jaylen Brown was out due to a thumb injury he suffered in the defeat.

Boston could've used Brown on the perimeter as the Bucks hit the Celtics with a three-point barrage.

Notable Performers

• Giannis Antetokounmpo, PF, Bucks: 32 points (11-22 FG), 17 points, seven assists, two blocks
• Khris Middleton, SF, Bucks: 23 points (8-13 FG; 3-5 3P), six rebounds, four assists, two steals
• Brook Lopez, C, Bucks: 16 points (6-10 FG; 3-5 3P), three rebounds, one assist, four blocks
• Donte DiVincenzo, SG, Bucks: 19 points (6-11 FG; 4-6 3P), three rebounds, one assist, two steals
• Kemba Walker, PG, Celtics: 40 points (14-23 FG; 4-11 3P), 11 rebounds, three assists, one block 
• Marcus Smart, PG, Celtics: 24 points (6-15 FG; 5-10 3P), four rebounds, two assists, two steals, one block

Bucks Bench Fends off Boston's 3rd-Quarter Comeback

The Bucks were hitting everything in sight during the first half. They shot 12-of-15 from beyond the arc, which was the second-best percentage in a single half over the last 15 years by a team that attempted at least 15 threes, per ESPN Stats & Info.

Donte DiVincenzo (13 points) was a few buckets away from matching his career high (18) through two quarters.

Milwaukee Bucks @Bucks

Donte's inferno 🔥🔥🔥

#FearTheDeer https://t.co/mSmK3QrsIV

The Bucks had 76 points by halftime, and their lead swelled to 27 points at one point in the second frame.

Not surprisingly, their red-hot three-point shooting was unsustainable, and their offense fell back to earth in the third quarter. The Celtics capitalized and trimmed the deficit to six points following a long-range effort from Marcus Smart with 5:16 left in the third.

Antetokounmpo headed to the bench after giving Milwaukee an eight-point advantage with 4:18 left on the clock. Rather than falling apart without its best player, the team surged to a 17-6 run to close out the quarter.

Shane Young @YoungNBA

George Hill turning into the greatest shooter of all-time is pretty meaningful for the Bucks' playoff chances

Curt Hogg @CyrtHogg

The Bucks bench unit absolutely did A Thing at the end of that quarter.

Brian Robb @BrianTRobb

38-10 edge for Bucks in bench points.

This is the blueprint head coach Mike Budenholzer will hope to replicate in the postseason.

Giannis was his usual self, crashing the boards and delivering highlight-reel plays.

NBA @NBA

The Greek Freak throws it down hard in #PhantomCam! #FearTheDeer

📺: @NBAonTNT https://t.co/C7bTTpbJVr

Milwaukee Bucks @Bucks

BLOCK PARTY x SPIN ZONE

#FearTheDeer https://t.co/o9hGbtK0y5

The Bucks can only push the reigning MVP so much, though. They'll need the bench to step up too, which is something that didn't happen when it mattered last year. 

In its first meeting with Boston, Milwaukee held a 16-point halftime lead before the Celtics outscored them by 20 points in the third quarter to go ahead.

Thursday was looking like a repeat until the Bucks' second unit helped right the ship. Things got a bit dicey toward the end, but Milwaukee may have taken its foot off the gas, knowing its opponent was rapidly running out of time to mount one last rally.

Celtics' Struggles from Deep Continue

A loss to the Bucks isn't necessarily a cause for concern, and the Celtics did well to make this a game after running into a buzzsaw in the first half. 

Milwaukee opened by hitting everything in sight. Combine that with a Celtics offense that was dependent largely on Marcus Smart and Kemba Walker, and the results were less than ideal for Boston.

The best way to sum up this game is to say Walker scored 24 points in the second quarter, and the Celtics still got outscored 40-38.

NBA @NBA

Kemba Walker paces the @celtics with 24 2nd quarter PTS on @NBAonTNT. https://t.co/c762g4ACYp

Sean Grande @SeanGrandePBP

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Kemba Walker: 24 in the 2nd quarter on 9-11 shooting.

If you're wondering, as I was, Isaiah Thomas' 29-point 4th against Miami (Dec. 30, 2016) is the Celtics record for points in a quarter.

Sometimes, it's just one of those nights.

Having said that, Brown's absence exacerbated what has been a persistent issue for the Celtics. They entered Thursday shooting 35.4 percent on three-pointers, 18th in the NBA. Match Boston up against an elite defensive team with length in a seven-game playoff series and it could be in serious trouble.

Chris Forsberg @ChrisForsberg_

Celtics entered the night ranked 18th in the NBA in 3PT%. Take away Kemba and they’d drop to 22nd.

Shooting a bigger need than size at this point. Boston reserves shooting 30.4% beyond the arc this season.

Jared Weiss @JaredWeissNBA

15/50 might be giving them a lilttle too much credit actually

gary washburn @GwashburnGlobe

#Celtics biggest need may be shooting off the bench. Teams are daring Grant and Semi to shoot threes. BOS thought Carsen Edwards may have been that guy to score in bunches off bench but it hasn't worked out that way.

Unless president of basketball operations Danny Ainge is holding an ace up his sleeve, there isn't a feasible midseason trade that could drastically reshape the Celtics' roster. And one could argue that isn't necessary anyway.

Ainge would be smart to at least add a veteran shooter or two for the right price in order to get the bench scoring the team sorely lacks.

What's Next?

The Bucks (37-6) have a trip to the Big Apple in store Saturday to play the Brooklyn Nets. The Celtics (27-13) begin a three-game homestand Saturday against the Phoenix Suns.