Bucks edge Celtics 103-101 after frantic final second

Milwaukee, May 8 (US): Giannis Antetokounmpo has found a way to get the best shots and reclaim his peak in time to help defending champion Milwaukee Bucks reclaim the lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals.


But it was the Boston Celtics’ poor timing that ultimately made the difference, the Associated Press reported.


Antetokounmpo rebounded from a rare poor performance by scoring 42 points and making the green light with 44.3 seconds remaining in a 103-101 win on Saturday. The Bucks leads the series best 2-1, with Game 4 on Monday night in Milwaukee.


“I know what my strengths are,” Antetokounmpo said. “Just try to read what’s in front of me and just play with my instincts. Sometimes I’ll play right and sometimes I’ll play wrong, but as long as I’m playing within my strengths, we’ll be in a good place.”


The victory wasn’t safe until replays confirmed that Al Horford’s potential comeback – capping a runaway sequence after Marcus Smart intentionally missed a free throw – came right after the bell.


“I saw Al tip, and I saw the red outline fade out on the back plate,” said Brooke Lopez of the Bucks Center. “It was very close.”


Boston slumped 103-100 when officials decided Marcus Smart had been fouled by Jrue Holiday before attempting to link a potential 3 indicator with 4.6 seconds remaining. Since it was a non-shooting foul, Smart only got two attempts from a free throw.


Smart made the first free throw, then deliberately missed the second – tossing a shot that slammed out of the backboard before hitting the edge.

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That’s when things got wild.


Smart got the recoil, but got it wrong trying. Boston’s Robert Williams lunged at the basket and sent the ball up and down the cup. Horford was waiting on the right side with a rebound attempt that also exploded. Horford then got a rebound and stopped it, but his last shot came after the bell sounded.


“She totally missed it,” Smart said. “No one was ready, (but) our guys were. I got it over the edge. We had a few chances at it. It just didn’t work out for us.”


The Celtics think Smart should have had a chance to hook the game on the goal line. Celtics and Smart coach Aimee Odoka said it must have been a holiday shooting error.


“You can see it clearly,” Odoka said. “I’ve seen it in person, but also in the movie. I just went and looked at him. It’s a shot. He writhes in his shot. He got stuck in the way. Bad missed call.”


Holiday differed.

“Honestly, it looks like he’s still facing the sidelines,” said Holiday, who scored 25 points. “This is not a shooting action. He was not facing the edge.”


Jaylen Brown led the Celtics with 27 points and 12 rebounds. Horford scored 22 points, 15 rebounds and five assists.


Boston trailed by 14 points late in the third quarter and was facing a 13-point deficit with less than 10 minutes left before returning. The Celtics took a 100-99 lead and advanced for the first time since the start of the third quarter from Brown’s two free throws, with 1:49 left.

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Both teams failed to score on their next possessions before Antetokounmpo put the Bucks back in front. Antetokounmpo then blocked Brown’s attempt to drive, resulting in the Holiday basket making it 103-100 with 11.2 seconds remaining.


Antetokounmpo’s winning last-minute plays highlighted his bouncing performance.


After shooting 38.5% (20 of 52) in the first two games of this series, Antetokounmpo went on 16 of 30 on Saturday. He made 62.5% of his attempts (15 of 24) from a two-point range. He had 12 rebounds and eight assists to score 42 points.


It was a big upgrade from his involvement in Game 2, when he went 2 of 12 and scored just five points in the first half before finishing 28 in the Bucks losing 109-86.

“There will be struggles, but at the end of the day, if you keep it up and stay on the right track, you will succeed,” Antetokounmpo said. “If you don’t stay on the right track, you won’t succeed. It’s that easy.”


Antetokounmpo made sure the Bucks weren’t thrown off course in their title defense.


Tatum’s hard day

On a day when Brown and Horford produced doubles, the Celtics lost in part to the struggle of All-Star striker Jason Tatum. Tatum hit 4 out of 19 overall and missed all six of his three-point attempts before finishing with 10 points.


Tatum said his left wrist was bothering him but added that it didn’t affect his play.

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“Maybe I was thinking a little too much,” Tatum said. “It all comes back to me having to do better readings.”


Hint

Celtics: Robert Williams went to the locker room in the third quarter after taking an elbow from Milwaukee’s Bobby Portez as they tangled under the basket as they chased after the ball. Williams later returned in the third. … Reserve striker Sam Hauser, who played two minutes in each of his first two games, was unavailable on Saturday due to a right shoulder injury.


Odoka said that Hauser fell in practice. “He’ll be fine in the long run,” Odoka said. “It’s just something he can come out with for a few weeks based on that.” …the Celtics lost despite having a huge advantage in the bad streak. The Celtics were 28 of 33 and Bucks 14 of 17 on free throw attempts.


Bucks: Reserve goalkeeper George Hill played for the first time this season after recovering from a strained abdominal muscle. … Grayson Allen started the first playoff of his career and Portis moved on to the bench role. …dollars beat a large free-throw variance. The Celtics were 28 of 33 and Bucks 14 of 17 on free throw attempts. … Lopez scored 13 points and 10 rebounds. He had collected eight points in the first two matches of this series.






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