3 Studs, 2 duds from Milwaukee Bucks' hard-fought loss to Boston Celtics

Dud - Brook Lopez

Frustrating would be the best way to describe this performance from Brook Lopez. In 21 minutes, he had eight points, four assists and two blocked shots, which was good, but he also had four personal fouls and two turnovers. It seemed like whenever the Bucks started gaining momentum, an offensive foul or poor decision from Lopez would send the ball the other way.

This was also a tough night for Lopez matchup-wise, as Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford both have an element of versatility that gave the big man fits. Other bigs who can shoot the long ball are known to give Lopez trouble, which happened here. Milwaukee saw a lot of their second half success when they went away from Lopez, which was the right move on this particular night.

Stud - Damian Lillard

With Antetokounmpo out, Lillard took the reins to lead the charge. After an incredibly slow start, it felt like Lillard was trending toward landing in dud territory, but he got himself out of that rut by continuing to let it fly. Soon enough, he was red-hot and helped fuel the Milwaukee Bucks' comeback attempt.

In 36 minutes, Lillard tallied 32 points on 52.4 percent shooting, knocking in six of his 10 3-point tries. For a bit, he was a man possessed, particularly from 3-point range, hitting an array of tough jumpers despite the excellent defense. He also had six assists, four rebounds and a steal.

The biggest knocks on Lillard were his four turnovers and his missed layup in the closing moments that ended Milwaukee's comeback attempt. Still, the good outweighed the bad, as Lillard put up an impressive outing and helped keep the Bucks alive until the very end. This is the Lillard they need.