BOSTON — The Celtics nearly let Monday’s game get out of hand early, but a huge shift in Boston’s defensive game allowed them to take a lead over the Milwaukee Bucks and never look back en route to a 117-103 victory at TD Garden.
Milwaukee closed the first quarter on an 18-4 run to head into the second quarter with a 30-21 lead. But Boston righted the ship in the second quarter, limiting the Bucks to 7-of-19 shooting in the frame and erupting on a 20-11 stretch of their own to enter the half with a 51-50 lead that they never gave up.
After the game, Grant Williams explained how the Celtics were able to turn things around and take home the win, which moved them to 14-14 on the season.
“I think we just played with a little more physicality,” he said. “It was one of those things where we had a big group out there and we were able to switch and defend and keep guys from getting easy baskets. Contested threes, forcing them into tough shots that they normally don’t take. It kind of just started in that second quarter and we kept that intensity rolling through the third and the fourth.”
Williams is a pretty reputable source on this one, too, considering Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer credited him with taking the defense to the next level — which prompted a pretty wholesome reaction from the young Celtics forward.
