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The Boston Celtics looked poised to take control of this series headed into the fourth quarter of game five in Boston. Then the bottom dropped out for the Celtics, who blew a 14 point lead with an atrocious fourth quarter, getting outscored 41-23 by the visiting Milwaukee Bucks. Jayson Tatum led Boston with 34 points, and Jaylen Brown added 26 points, but neither player touched the ball in the final 30 seconds as the Celtics offense lost its way down the stretch. The Bucks are now just one win away from advancing to the Eastern Conference finals. Can the Celtics force a game 7 with a win on the road? Find the best bookmakers for betting on the Milwaukee/Boston game 6.
The Celtics got out-rebounded 49-36 on the game but, more importantly, 17-5 on the offensive glass. The Celtics utilized a smaller lineup featuring Tatum, Brown, Al Horford, Smart and Derrick White for a large portion of the fourth quarter, and the size issues may have caught up to the Celtics. The Celtics can not afford to go with this smaller lineup if they expect to win game 6 in Milwaukee. Boston’s floor-spacing has also been an issue, and a lot of that issue has fallen on the shoulders of Grant Williams, who has scored just 18 points in the last three games; when Williams is off, the Celtics offense becomes stagnant, and the spacing becomes terrible for the Celtics offense.
Bet the Bucks -1.5 at Caesars Sportsbook! Bet the Celtics +1.5 at Caesars Sportsbook
The Bucks decided to go small, much like the Celtics; the difference is that it worked for Milwaukee. The Bucks chose to take Brook Lopez out and feature Bobby Portis Jr. and Pat Connaughton in a smaller lineup down the stretch along with Antetokounmpo, Wes Matthews and Jrue Holiday. The lineup brought the Bucks back in the 4th quarter, led as usual by Giannis, who tallied 40 points for the game. Over the last three games, the Bucks have out-rebounded the Celtics 58-32, which would be hard for any team to overcome.
The Bucks have all of the momentum heading into game six, and the defending champions will be hard to beat at home. Milwaukee’s decision to go with Portis over Lopez and Connaughton over Grayson Allen during game five will undoubtedly be something they will go to again in game 6. The lineup didn’t hurt them on the glass and gave them more options, with Boston pressuring Giannis down the stretch. How will Boston respond? They cannot afford to go with their smaller lineup again, but playing bigger hasn’t helped them on the boards. Check out the top new sportsbooks for betting on the NBA!
Antetokounmpo has been nearly unstoppable over the last three games averaging 39 points per game, 13.7 rebounds per game and 5.3 assists. Can the Celtics slow him down? Giannis has seemed almost better without the 7 foot Lopez on the court, which is another reason I think we will see the Bucks go back to the smaller lineup.
Milwaukee will fo small in-game six much as they did at the end of game 5. I like the Bucks to win a close one, and the difference will be the Bucks out-rebounding the Celtics; plus, it doesn’t hurt to have the best basketball player in the world on your side. Pick Bucks -1.5
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