Celtics-Bucks takeaways: Giannis shines, Tatum struggles as C’s drop Game 3 originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The Boston Celtics made it interesting, but their fourth-quarter surge wasn’t enough to propel them to a Game 3 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
After scoring only 17 points in a brutal third quarter, the C’s offense woke up and dropped 18 in the first 4:30 of the fourth. They finished with 34 in the frame, but that still was two less than they needed.
It came down to the final play as Al Horford‘s tip-in nearly sent that game into overtime. Horford didn’t get the shot off in time though, resulting in a 103-101 Bucks victory and a 2-1 series lead for Milwaukee.
Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo shined in front of the Fiserv Forum crowd with 42 points. Jaylen Brown and Al Horford countered with 27 and 22 respectively, but it wasn’t enough to outweigh the lackluster performance from Jayson Tatum (10 points). As a team, Boston shot only 37.2 percent from the field.
Game 4 of the best-of-seven series is set for Monday at 7:30 p.m. ET. Here are our takeaways from the Celtics’ tough loss.
Can’t keep Giannis down for long
The Celtics had done a nice job defending Giannis Antetokounmpo through the first two games of the series. The two-time MVP shot only 20-for-52 (38.4 percent) from the field in Games 1 and 2 combined.
Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer noted after Tuesday’s game that Antetokounmpo “always figures things out.” He wasn’t kidding. The Greek Freak put on a show in front of his home crowd with 42 points (16-30 FG), 12 rebounds, and eight assists. He also notched two steals and two blocks.
It was Antetokounmpo’s aggressiveness that stood out compared to his previous performances in the series. He set the tone with his physicality, and that proved to be the difference-maker in this gritty Game 3.
Off day for Jayson Tatum
There’s no sugarcoating it: this was Jayson Tatum’s worst performance in recent memory. It also was the worst postseason performance of…