Milwaukee Bucks (56-33) vs Boston Celtics (56-32)
Game Info: Saturday, May 7, 2022 at 3:30 pm (Fiserv Forum)
Betting Odds: Milwaukee Bucks -2.5 -- Over/Under: 214 Click Here for the Latest Odds
The Boston Celtics and the Milwaukee Bucks duke it out in a pivotal Game 3 at the Fiserv Forum on Saturday afternoon.
The Boston Celtics will be looking to take their first lead in the series after blowing past the Bucks in a 109-86 win in Game 2 on Tuesday. Jaylen Brown bounced back from his poor performance in Game 1 with 30 points, six rebounds and six assists, Jayson Tatum added 29 points with eight assists and three steals while Grant Williams was a real spark off the bench as he drained six 3-pointers to finish with 21 points. As a team, the Celtics shot 47 percent from the field and a sizzling 20 of 43 from the 3-point line as they stormed out of the gates in a quick start and never looked in danger after exploding for 65 points in the first half. Derrick White had a rough night as he finished scoreless on zero of six shooting but that was the only blemish from an otherwise dominant victory without Marcus Smart in the lineup.
Meanwhile, the Milwaukee Bucks will be going back to the drawing board after getting run off the floor in Game 2 on Tuesday. Giannis Antetokounmpo led the team with 28 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, Jrue Holiday added 19 points with seven assists while Bobby Portis chipped in with 13 points and eight rebounds. As a team, the Bucks shot 46 percent from the field and a miserly three of 18 from the 3-point line as they really struggled to contain the Celtics in the first half and never looked threatening after falling behind by 25 points at halftime. Pat Connaughton was the only contributor off the bench with 13 points on six of seven shooting and they got a combined six points from Brook Lopez and Wesley Matthews.
Looking at the betting trends, the Celtics are 5-0 ATS in their last five games as a road underdog, 16-5 ATS in their last 21 road games and 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games overall. The Bucks are 1-5 ATS in their last six home games, 4-1 ATS in their last five games against a team with a winning record and 4-1 ATS in their last five games overall.
Head to head, the over is 8-3 in the last 11 meetings overall, the Celtics are 8-1 ATS in the last nine meetings overall and the Celtics are 4-0 ATS in the last four meetings in Milwaukee.
The Bucks must have been so full of confidence after taking the series opener, but the Celtics responded with one of their best wins of the season thanks to a bounce-back performance from Brown who was unstoppable in the first half. The Bucks were able to steal home-court advantage by getting the road win in Game 1, but they’re going to need to play better if they want to avoid falling behind in this series. The Bucks got a more efficient shooting performance from Antetokounmpo, but they made just three shots from deep compared to the Celtics who drained 20. The disparity from the 3-point line won’t be so one-sided in this one as the Bucks’ supporting cast should perform better at home, but the Celtics are expecting to have Marcus Smart back in the lineup, so this one is really hard to pick. The Celtics are 8-1 ATS in the last nine meetings overall and I think they can take the lead with a win in this spot.