Grades from Milwaukee Bucks’ Game 1 victory over Boston Celtics

May 1, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
May 1, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
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Milwaukee Bucks: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Boston Celtics: Jayson Tatum
May 1, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

Grading Milwaukee Bucks vs. Boston Celtics Game 1: Celtics

Boston Celtics: C

The Boston Celtics came out of the gate hot, starting up 6-2 and when the Bucks took a 12-11 lead went on an 8-0 run, but the Milwaukee Bucks finished the first quarter on a 15-5 run and held a 3-point lead after 12 minutes. The Celtics were outscored by seven in the second quarter and down double digits at half. The Celtics did manage to win the third quarter albeit only by two points even though the Bucks didn’t hit a single 3-point shot in the third frame. Boston finished flat, scoring only 19 points in the fourth quarter and 89 total.

Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown were held mostly in check, Tatum scored 21 points on 6-of-18 shooting and Brown scored just 12 on 4-of-13 shooting. The Celtics faced a team with a much tougher brand of defense in the Milwaukee Bucks than they got in the first round from the Brooklyn Nets. Jaylen Brown committed seven of the Celtics’ 18 turnovers.

Marcus Smart, despite his gutty efforts to play through bumps and bruises, finished with 10 points on just 3-of-11 shooting. Robert Williams was the only player that played significant minutes and shot well, making 3-of-6 shots, and Williams played good defense, swatting three shots and grabbing eight rebounds.

The Celtics have a lot of work to do offensively if they want to compete with the Bucks, starting with their 3-point shooting, the Celtics either need to take less or make more, 18-for-50 isn’t going to cut it on a team as talented and well rounded as the Bucks.

The Bucks just need to continue doing what they’re doing, clean up their early turnovers and turn up their offensive efficiency a bit and they’ll be just fine.