Another night, another tough Celtics loss.
Boston lacked luster in its 128-123 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday at Fiserv Forum, its fifth loss in the last seven games. The loss drops the Celtics to third in the Eastern Conference behind the 28-12 Miami Heat.
Though they managed to trim a 22-point deficit to four, the Celtics simply couldn’t complete the comeback. Milwaukee buried Boston from 3-point range, sinking 51.6 percent of their attempts to the Celtics’ 30.6. And while both squads hit 43 shots from the field, the C’s had took 11 more attempts than the Bucks.Â
One player, however, stood out among the rest — Kemba Walker.
The Celtics guard posted 40 points on 60.9 percent shooting as well as 11 rebounds and three assists. He is the first Celtics player this season to record 40-plus points and 10-plus rebounds in the same game, per Celtics Stats.
That said, head coach Brad Stevens doesn’t think it should be Walker’s job to carry the team.
“It’s not his responsibility to be responsible for everybody else’s energy, but I’m glad that he accepts it,” Stevens said, via NBC Sports Boston. “I’m glad that he wants that. And he certainly brought it tonight. He was awfully special tonight. … He was the only reason we had a chance (in the first half). … He just willed himself to baskets.”
Coach Stevens says Kemba was the only reason the #Celtics had a chance vs the Bucks (presented by https://t.co/Av8GdCAzPA) pic.twitter.com/GRO3Zv3asE
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) January 17, 2020
He’s not wrong. If the Celtics want to succeed in the playoffs, they’re going to need to be much more consistent going forward. Boston has proven it’s got grit, as evidenced by their 113-101 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Monday and their 10-game win streak earlier in the season. But it’s a long postseason, and consistency will be key.
Now, however, is not the time to lose faith.
“I don’t think the team is down or anything like that,” Gordon Hayward said, via NBC Sports Boston’s Chris Forsberg. “I think we realize we’ve got work to do and we get right back to it.”
Here are some more notes from Thursday’s Celtics-Bucks game:
— The Bucks made the Celtics look silly in the first half.
Milwaukee went 12-for-15 (80 percent) from three through the first 24 minutes of Thursday’s game. That’s tied for second-best 3-point field goal percentage by any team in one half in the last 15 seasons — and the best of any team this season, per ESPN Stats & Info.
— For the second time in three games, Hayward failed to score a single basket until late in the contest.
Hayward took nine shots in nearly 23 minutes before sinking a 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded to end the third. He wound up with seven points on a miserable 10-percent (!) shooting, posting five rebounds and two assists.
— On the plus side, Jayson Tatum now has scored double figures in a career-high 30 straight games, per Celtics Stats.
— The Celtics continue their seven-game homestand Saturday when the Phoenix Suns come to town. Tip-off from TD Garden is slated for 7 p.m. ET.
