Three Studs, Two Duds From Celtics’ Resurgent Road Win Over Bucks

The Boston Celtics looked lost when Sunday’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks began at Fiserv Forum.

That only lasted for a half before Boston surged back into the game against their Eastern Conference rivals for a 113-107 win on the road.

Boston improved to 9-2 on the season, including 2-0 against the Bucks, while Milwaukee fell to 2-8.

Here are three studs and two duds from the Celtics’ victory.

STUDS
Payton Pritchard
The Celtics needed a boost after a hot start for the Bucks and Pritchard provided just that, particularly in the second quarter. Pritchard got cooking from beyond the arc and finished the first half with 17 points and five three-pointers on eight attempts.

Doc Rivers highlighted Pritchard’s impact in the first meeting at TD Garden and watched Pritchard ignite the Celtics once again Sunday.

Third-quarter response
The Celtics clearly flipped a switch at halftime and looked like a completely different team coming out to start the third quarter. Boston opened on a 12-0 run to take the lead from a double-digit halftime deficit. The Celtics looked better from three-point range, cycled the perimeter well defensively and won the quarter 29-15 to take a three-point lead to the final 12 minutes.

Giannis Antetokounmpo
Milwaukee’s face of the franchise set the pace immediately on Sunday and attacked the basket to put the Celtics on their heels. He cruised to 30 points in just three quarters and finished with 42 points.

Antetokounmpo did have a low light that went unnoticed by the referees on a missed foul call on a Jayson Tatum shot attempt in the third quarter.

DUDS
First-quarter effort
The Celtics could not have had a worse start Sunday. The Bucks ran circles around Boston with a flurry of two-on-ones and a steady attack to the basketball. Joe Mazzulla called a timeout less than four minutes into the game after the Bucks ripped off a 16-2 run.

Bucks starters not named Antetokounmpo or Lillard
Milwaukee’s stars came to play from the jump on Sunday. Antetokounmpo poured in the points while Damian Lillard also found an offensive rhythm and the beat the shot clock with a wild three-pointer in the first half.

Outside of those two, Milwaukee’s starting lineup failed to make an impact. Brooks Lopez, Taurean Price and Andre Jackson Jr. combined for just 16 points to support the stars.