Three Studs, Three Duds From Resilient Celtics Victory Over Bucks

BOSTON — The Celtics extended their season-opening winning streak to four games after defeating the Milwaukee Bucks, 119-108, at TD Garden on Monday night.

Without Kristaps Porzingis and Sam Hauser, it took a gritty effort from Boston to outlast Milwaukee’s determination to bounce back after a 1-2 start to its campaign. The Celtics weathered the storm of Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo combining for 63 points, a few back-and-forths with officials, and an off night from Jayson Tatum, to still remain undefeated.

Here are three studs and duds from the first Celtics-Bucks clash of the season:

STUDS
Payton Pritchard
Referring to Pritchard as Boston’s “Sixth Man” is an unofficial label, but one the undersized guard has lived up to nonetheless.

Pritchard made an impact early, scoring 19 points while knocking down five 3-pointers while 7:25 minutes remained until halftime. That made Pritchard Boston’s leading scorer midway through the game and helped the Celtics, again, fill the reserve unit void of Hauser’s injury (back) absence to the best of his abilities. Pritchard finished with 28 points in 27 minutes logged and connected on eight threes. He even sent Doc Rivers into the ultimate state of defeat on the sidelines.

Jaylen Brown
Milwaukee’s defense made it difficult for Boston to put together any sort of runaway rally, but Brown’s composure through the ups and downs was vital. The 28-year-old pitched in with a team-leading 30 points to lead Boston’s starting unit, shooting an efficient 10-of-19 from the field. Brown missed all four of his 3-point attempts, but that didn’t faze the three-time All-Star or hinder the difference he was able to make from start to finish.

Boston’s energy to end the third quarter
The Celtics tallied a pair of technical fouls amid a testy tail-end of the third frame after voicing their displeasures with the officials.

At the time, the contest with knotted up at a 79-79 tie and the Bucks were snagging critical momentum to put together a run. Staying patient with the challenge at hand, however, Boston re-took the momentum as Derrick White knocked down back-to-back threes — and blocked 6-foot-11 Antetokounmpo — moments before Pritchard drained a last-second buzzer beater to end the quarter, giving Boston a 90-82 advantage.

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DUDS
Everyone else on Boston’s bench except Pritchard
It didn’t take long for the domino effect of Porzingis’ absence to hamper the Celtics but the untrustworthy reserves didn’t pull their weight. Jordan Walsh, Xavier Tillman Sr. and Luke Kornet combined for two points by the end of the third quarter on four shot attempts. Missing Hauser’s outside touch does a number on the 3-point threat, but Pritchard can’t be the only reliable scoring weapon.

Jaden Springer, Neemias Queta, Drew Peterson and Baylor Scheierman played garbage time in the fourth quarter (two minutes each).

Jayson Tatum
After it seemed as though Tatum’s offseason fuel would produce double-doubles each night, the five-time All-Star struggled for the first time. Tatum scored 15 points, racked up five fouls and struggled from beyond the arc, finishing 1-for-8 from three. Boston didn’t receive a 37-point masterclass showing like the one Tatum provided on Opening Night, however, expecting that for 82 games straight is unrealistic.

As Mazzulla’s preached ever since taking over at the helm, it’s up to the Celtics to work around adapting to the challenges that come with each team; even if that means picking up Tatum when he’s down.

Doc Rivers
Since bailing on ESPN to accept Milwaukee’s head-coaching gig, Rivers has struggled.

The Bucks were a below-average defensive team last season, endured a first-round playoff elimination to conclude 2023-24 and the pressure of alleviating Antetokounmpo’s threats to bail on the franchise remains above Rivers’ shoulders. Granted, it’s only October but Milwaukee was desperate in its attempt to mesh all last season too.