3 takeaways from Milwaukee Bucks’ nail-biting win over Boston Celtics
By Dalton Sell
The Milwaukee Bucks’ center duo proved to be an impactful one-two punch as the pair provided a sizeable spark against the Boston Celtics
It is far from controversial to say that the Milwaukee Bucks have one of the better center duos in the entire association, and it was on full display in last night’s win. Brook Lopez and Bobby Portis combined for 32 points and 14 rebounds as they both played their part to help get this victory.
Portis was particularly great as he added in 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting, including 3-of-4 from long distance. The center was scoring the basketball at a high level from start to finish, especially late in the contest as he played a big role in the fourth quarter, having buried two clutch threes to put the Celtics away. In addition to his 17 points for the game, Portis tallied seven rebounds, one assist, and one steal while finishing as an astonishing +28, by far the best on Milwaukee. Portis had himself an outstanding all-around night, and this is the type of performance he needed after dealing with a shooting slump recently that hindered his production.
Though Portis ended up with more minutes, Lopez also had a noticeable impact in this one as he finished with 15 points, seven rebounds, and one blocked shot. It was a tough shooting night for the veteran as he went just 7-of-16 from the field, including 1-of-4 from three, largely due to an ample amount of head-scratching shot choices. Nevertheless, Lopez still managed to make his presence felt on the offensive end while also protecting the hoop defensively. Following his best game of the year in a massive win over the Chicago Bulls recently, this was a strong follow-up for Lopez. The biggest factor for him moving forward will be his shot selection.
In short, it was a great night for these two. With Lopez having some struggles, the Bucks rolled with Portis to close this one out, which worked well in the end. That is the benefit of having two starting-caliber centers on the same roster.