Celtics fall short in first game of the restart against the Bucks, 119-112

Orlando- The Boston Celtics could not stop the Milwaukee Bucks late in the fourth quarter and fall short 119-112.

In the first half, the Celtics looked out of sync on both sides of the floor, as they were down 15 points early in the first quarter. Boston went 1 of 6 from three-point land and the mid-range shots were not landing early on. However, in the second quarter, Kemba Walker started to hit his shots, as well as Marcus Smart to cut the lead down to four in the early stages of the quarter.

Foul trouble was one of the key factors that kept Jayson Tatum passive when he was on the floor. He had three fouls in the quarter and was not shooting effectively. Tatum played 14 minutes had 3 points and 2 rebounds. Jaylen Brown had a quiet half as he had 9 points and 2 rebounds. The Celtics got themselves back into the game by getting to the free-throw line 22 times and clamping down on the Bucks on the defensive end. At the end of the half, the Celtics closed the lead to six, 64-58.

In the second half, Brown, Daniel Theis, and Walker put together a 7-2 run to cut the lead down to two early in the third quarter. Late in the third, Boston put pressure on the Bucks defense, as they got back to Boston basketball. They pushed the pace and utilize their speed to get easy layups. While Tatum went 2 for11, he put his teammates in a position to get easy baskets. The Celtics' bench kept them in the game as Brad Wanamaker contributed. He had some big points in the third quarter and did the little things to help out his team. At the end of the third quarter, both teams were tied at 87.

At the start of the fourth quarter, the Bucks went on a 7-0 run to extend their lead to seven, but Brown and Wanamaker kept the Celtics within striking distance with a couple of mid-range shots. Back and forth the Celtics and Bucks went with lead changes with under five minutes left in regulation. With 2:35 left in regulation, there was a controversial play that involved Giannis Antetokounmp pushing Gordon Hayward and no foul was called. If the referees called the foul, it would have been Giannis' sixth foul and he would have been out of the game. The foul was not called. The Celtics could not maintain Giannis in the closing seconds and fell short in their second half coming back, 119-112.

Brown finished the game with 22 points, 1 assist, and four rebounds.