Jayson Tatum Sees Celtics’ Abilities In ‘Ugly’ Win Over Bucks

The Boston Celtics had a chance to face the Milwaukee Bucks without star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo on Wednesday night.

Boston certainly seemed to play up to that advantage, leading by 18 points after three quarters. The final 12 minutes were not smooth sailing for the Celtics as Milwaukee opened the quarter on a 21-9 run.

In the final minutes, Tatum and Jaylen Brown stepped up from the free-throw line to close out the contested finish in a 122-119 victory on Wednesday night at TD Garden. Tatum finished the night with 31 points and eight rebounds. While the Celtics did not have the cleanest finish, adding another tally in the win column stood out.

“It was ugly,” Tatum told ESPN’s Cassidy Hubbarth after the win, as seen on the ESPN broadcast. “We didn’t play the way we wanted to in the fourth. They went on a run. No lead is safe in the NBA. You gotta understand that, but a win is a win. We’ll take it.”

As they have all season, the Celtics relied on contributions up and down the roster to finish off a win against a quality Eastern Conference opponent. With playoff implications looming in each matchup, Tatum praised the complete whole that Boston presents.

“We’ve just got a really complete team,” Tatum added. “… We’ve been playing great all season. We’ve still got a long way to go. I like the way that we’re trending.”

With a six-game road trip beginning on Friday, Tatum and the Celtics look to turn into gear and create legitimate momentum entering the postseason.