Giannis Antetokounmpo loves rising to the occasion, and he did so again in Game 3 against the Boston Celtics. With the Milwaukee Bucks on the verge of blowing a 13-point fourth quarter lead, the Greek Freak bullied his way into the paint for a go-ahead bucket with 44.3 seconds left in the game. The Celtics were unable to retake the advantage after that.
That bucket aside, Antetokounmpo put on an overall performance that was worthy of the victory. His final tally of 42 points, 12 rebounds, eight assists, two steals and two blocks was a thing beauty. He shot 16 of 30 from the floor, and if you take away his three-point attempts (where he was 1 of 6), you can see how unstoppable he was. He also shot 9 of 12 from the free throw line.
We’re getting used to these numbers from Giannis, and that’s a scary thought for everyone else in the Eastern Conference. He showed last year that he can turn it up a notch in the playoffs, and that’s what’s happening again this time around.
Game 4 should be another war, and it’s doubtful that Jayson Tatum will play as badly as he did in Game 3. The Celtics’ star was an uncharacteristic 4 of 19 from the field and only had 10 points, but was also a defensive pest and finished with four blocks and a steal. Tatum is getting some deserved flak for his performance, but I think he’ll bounce back strong.
Boston will also be encouraged by how they managed to crawl back into the game into the fourth quarter, and were milliseconds from getting a game-tying basket.
With the first two games of the series ending in a blowout, Game 3 was the first real test for both sides. It’s going to be a fun watching the rest of the games unfold. We thought the Bucks didn’t have a great chance with Khris Middleton missing the entire series, but as it turns out, sometimes all you need is some guy named Giannis.
