Celtics romp over Bucks to close out road trip

Zack Cox, Boston Herald on Apr 3, 2026

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The Bucks are nearing the end of a lost season. The Celtics are gearing up for what they hope will be a deep playoff run.

Both teams looked the part Friday night in Milwaukee.

The Celtics closed out their final extended road trip of the season by bludgeoning the Bucks, 133-101, at Fiserv Forum. Boston’s magic number to clinch the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference now sits at three with five games remaining.

Six Celtics scored in double figures, including Jayson Tatum, who fell just short of what would have been his second consecutive triple-double. Tatum continued his impressive comeback tour by tallying 23 points on 8-of-16 shooting, 11 rebounds, nine assists and three steals before sitting out the fourth quarter with Boston in control.

Jaylen Brown scored a game-high 26 points, with 10 of them coming at the foul line (10 for 11). Neemias Queta dominated inside against a Bucks team that was playing without two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, racking up 19 points on 8-of-11 shooting, 10 rebounds and four blocks for his second straight double-double.

Along with Antetokounmpo, who told local reporters pregame that he’s healthy enough to play but being held out regardless, the Bucks also were without starters Ryan Rollins and Kevin Porter Jr., and veterans Bobby Portis and Gary Trent Jr. The Celtics were near full strength, missing only backup center Nikola Vucevic, who has yet to return from the fractured finger he suffered on March 6.

That mismatch was immediately apparent.

Two days after putting up a franchise-record 53 first-quarter points in a win over Miami, the Celtics scored 26 in the first six minutes against the undermanned Bucks. Milwaukee’s attention on Brown and Tatum created several wide-open inside looks for Queta, who started 5 for 6 and drew two shooting fouls during a 13-point frame.

The Boston big man became the first player to tally double-digit points, five or more rebounds and three or more blocks in a first quarter since Anthony Davis on Dec. 8, 2024. Tatum fed him on back-to-back makes at the rim that put the Celtics ahead 26-8.

The C’s also got off to another sizzling start from 3-point range, hitting eight of their first nine triples. Sam Hauser again spearheaded that effort, as he did during his 5-for-5 start from deep against the Heat. This time, the Wisconsin native went 3 for 3 on first-quarter threes, all off assists from Brown.

Just three of the Celtics’ 15 first-quarter baskets were unassisted, and the team did not commit its first turnover until Tatum was called for traveling at the 4:31 mark of the second quarter.

Payton Pritchard did not attempt a shot in the opening period — Boston’s entire bench took just one, a late 3 by Jordan Walsh, and scored zero points — but he asserted himself early in the second. The sixth man had a hand in each of the Celtics’ first 14 points of the quarter, scoring 12 himself and dishing a pass to Luka Garza for the other two. Pritchard dissected Milwaukee’s defense at all three levels during that flurry, converting two layups, two 3-pointers and one nine-foot fadeaway.

The Celtics led 75-55 at halftime, nearly matching their 80-point first half against Miami.

A 15-3 run early in the second half stretched the lead to 31 points. It peaked at 35 points as Boston coasted to a wire-to-wire win.

Tatum registered his ninth assist less than three minutes after halftime and pulled down his 10th rebound just past the midway point of the third quarter. He tried hard to find the assist that would push him into double digits, even passing up a wide-open 3-pointer to flip a pass to a slightly less open Pritchard. But Pritchard’s 3 missed the mark as time expired in the third quarter, and head coach Joe Mazzulla sat Tatum, Brown, Hauser and Queta for the entire fourth.

Though Tatum couldn’t reach triple-double territory, he posted his eighth double-double in 13 games since his return from Achilles surgery. He’s been one of the NBA’s top rebounders over the last month, entering Friday ranked third in the league in defensive rebounds per game. The only two players ahead of him: Nikola Jokic and Victor Wembanyama.

White played the first six minutes of the third quarter — and hit the last three of his five 3-pointers to finish with 17 points — before giving way to Boston’s deep reserves. Veteran big man Charles Bassey, who is nearing the end of his second 10-day contract with the Celtics, went 3 for 3 in mop-up duty.

Rookie Hugo Gonzalez did not enter until garbage time for the second straight game — a notable development as Mazzulla works to finalize his playoff rotation.

The Celtics will face potential first-round opponents in three of their final five regular-season games: Sunday against the Toronto Raptors, Tuesday against the Charlotte Hornets and next Sunday against the Orlando Magic, all at TD Garden. They’ll also visit the third-place New York Knicks on Thursday in a game that could have seeding implications and host the New Orleans Pelicans next Friday.