Jayson Tatum scored 31 points with 12 rebounds and six assists to help the visiting Boston Celtics overcome a 17-point deficit and defeat the Milwaukee Bucks 113-107 Sunday.
Payton Pritchard came off the bench to score 18 points for the Celtics, who trailed 49-32 with 9:16 remaining in the second quarter. Pritchard made 5 of his 8 3-point attempts.
Milwaukee scored 40 points in the first quarter, but was held to 38 points in the second half. The Bucks trailed by three late in the game, but Jrue Holiday made two free throws with 1:35 to play to extend Boston’s lead to 109-104. Milwaukee was never closer than five the rest of the way.
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 43 points and 13 rebounds for the Bucks, who fell to 1-3 at home. Bobby Portis added 15 points and seven rebounds for Milwaukee and Damian Lillard had 14 points and six assists.
Boston’s Jaylen Brown returned after missing four games with a strained left hip flexor. He scored 14 points in 37 minutes but was 4 of 13 from the floor. Brown entered the game averaging 25.7 points in six games this season.
Holiday, playing against his former team, and Derrick White added 15 points apiece for Boston.
Milwaukee used an 11-0 run to jump out to a 16-2 lead and had a 40-30 advantage after one quarter. The Bucks had a 69-58 halftime lead.
Antetokounmpo scored 27 of his 43 points in the first two quarters. The Bucks shot 63.6 percent from the field in the first quarter (14 of 22) and 58.1 percent from the field in the first half (25 of 43) but only 36.8 percent in the second half (14 of 38).
The Celtics scored the first 12 points after halftime and took their first lead on an Al Horford 3-pointer that made it a 70-69 contest with 9:22 remaining in the third. Boston held Milwaukee to 15 points in the quarter and led 87-84 entering the final 12 minutes.
It was the second meeting between the teams this season. Boston beat Milwaukee at home 119-108 on Oct. 28. — Field Level Media/Reuters
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