Shorthanded Celtics Obtain Unthinkable Record In Loss To Bucks

The Boston Celtics have achieved plenty as part of their 62-win regular season.

But they might not want the record they obtained in a 104-91 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks at Fiserv Forum on Tuesday night.

The Celtics, who were without Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford, did the unthinkable, and not in a good way. Boston became the first team in NBA history to not attempt a single free throw in a game.

The Bucks didn’t get to the charity stripe much more than the Celtics with Milwaukee shooting just two free throws.

“Another day in the NBA,” Celtics star forward Jayson Tatum told reporters, per NBC Sports Boston. “I don’t know, maybe just gearing up for the playoffs, they’re going to let a lot of things go. So, I guess just getting us ready for playoff basketball.”

Very few fouls were called in the game, which led to nearly no trips to the free-throw line. The Bucks were whistled for four fouls while the Celtics committed eight infractions.

The Celtics didn’t have much to play for against the Bucks. It feels like Boston locked up the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference forever ago since it holds a 14-game lead over the second-seeded Bucks, who now have a big cause for concern with Giannis Antetokounmpo leaving the game due to injury.

Boston coasting to the finish line of the regular season could have been a reason for their dispirited and lackluster offensive performance, which Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla saw issues with more than what his team did on the other end of the floor. The Celtics had a season-low point total in the loss.

“I thought it was more of our offense first half. Some points defensively,” Mazzulla told reporters, per NBC Sports Boston. “But for the most part, I just thought we had too many empty possessions on the offensive end.”

Mazzulla added: “Waiting too long to get into our spacing. Too many shots at the end of the shot clock. Just got to get into it quicker.”