This image is an AI-generated illustration rather than matchday photography
The Bucks led 20-6 inside five minutes and were still ahead after one quarter, yet the Boston Celtics finished Sunday night at Fiserv Forum with a 117-97 win, an 18-0 run that decided the game and a Milwaukee team now 1-9.
A 20-6 start and an 18-0 answer
Kyle Kuzma scored 14 points in the first five minutes and pushed the Bucks to a 20-6 lead, the largest advantage Milwaukee produced in the game.
Jayson Tatum scored the final 10 points of the first quarter to cut the deficit to 27-25, a stretch that stopped Milwaukee from building a second run.
George opened the second period with eight straight points; the first of his two threes in that spell put Boston ahead 28-27 and the game turned there.
A layup and another three from George capped an 18-0 run that took Boston out of a 20-6 hole and into a lead they did not surrender again.
In the wider picture, it was the second Boston game in five nights for Milwaukee: the Celtics won 109-102 on Wednesday in Boston with Tatum rested, and reached Milwaukee after opening a four-game trip with a 119-80 win at Charlotte on Friday.
Twenty-two points and a bench fourth quarter
Boston led 58-45 at halftime and opened the third quarter with nine straight points to push the margin to 22, after which the Celtics were never ahead by fewer than 15 points.
Tatum finished with 21 points on 6-of-19 shooting, 5-of-11 from three and six assists, and spent the entire fourth quarter on the bench.
George led all starters with 27 points on 11-of-18 shooting, including 5-of-10 from distance, plus three rebounds, one assist and two steals for a plus-16 rating.
The bench carried the margin: Pritchard was plus-29 with 12 points in 29 minutes, and White had seven of Boston's 27 assists.
Mitchell Robinson scored 12 points on 6-of-6 shooting with seven rebounds, four steals and a plus-19 in 18 minutes, while Neemias Queta added 13 points, nine rebounds and four assists.
Turner's three points and a career night elsewhere
Milwaukee fell to 1-9, a start that is the franchise's worst since 1993-94, when the Bucks lost 10 of their first 11 games and finished 20-62.
Kuzma led Milwaukee with 27 points on 10-of-17 shooting and 6-of-13 from three, adding four rebounds and two blocks in 31 minutes.
Myles Turner scored three points on 1-of-8 shooting with five rebounds and a career-high seven assists, and has shot 1-of-15 across his last two games.
The Celtics move to 8-2 and are scheduled at Philadelphia on Tuesday night before finishing the trip in Toronto; the Bucks are also on the road in New York on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Boston shot 45-of-95 for 47 percent and 18-of-48 from three, outrebounded Milwaukee 48 to 36, recorded 12 steals and turned 15 Bucks turnovers into 11 points.
Editor's take: Two meetings, two Boston wins, by seven points and by twenty: the Bucks have not yet found a version of this matchup they can control.
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