Boston Celtics vs Milwaukee Bucks 5/9/22: Starting Lineups, Matchup Preview, Betting Odds, Predictions

Boston Celtics vs. Milwaukee Bucks Matchup Preview (5/9/22)

After a chaotic win in Game Three, the Milwaukee Bucks will look to further expand their lead in this series in Game Four at home. Milwaukee was up two points in the final seconds with Marcus Smart at the free-throw line. Smart intentionally missed the second free throw, corralled his miss, put up a shot, and missed it. Then, Al Horford had an attempt to tip the ball in to tie the game and consequently send it to overtime but came up just short. The margin for error in the playoffs is so tiny, and Boston let an opportunity to extend the game slip out of its hands. Now, the Celtics are in a position where they desperately need to win Game Four if they want a chance to compete in the Eastern Conference Finals. Meanwhile, Milwaukee is right where it wants to be: playing at home for a chance to go up 3-1 in this series against Boston. Check out my Game Four analysis below to see who I believe will win this matchup and the series!

Boston Celtics vs. Milwaukee Bucks Betting Odds

Boston got one of the worst performances out of Jayson Tatum in his young career and had to withstand a 42-point explosion from Giannis Antetokounmpo. Still, the C’s almost came away with the win on the road, losing by just two points. I don’t anticipate another abysmal offensive game from Tatum, and it’ll be difficult for Giannis to beat his 42/12/8 line from the last game. I will take the Boston Celtics against the spread once again; so be it if I have to die on that hill. Boston knows how important this game is to its title chances, and it should show up.

While this might come back to bite me, I will stick with betting on the under at 212 points for Game Four. The first three games have come nowhere close to this 212 point total. As a matter of fact, two of those games did not even reach 200 combined points. Both teams may shoot much better than they have been and blow past this number, but their defenses have been spectacular. If that doesn’t change, neither should the game’s point total.

How To Watch

Date: 5/9/22
Time: 7:30 PM ET
Arena: Fiserv Forum – Milwaukee, WI
Channel: TNT

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Boston Celtics Starting Lineup

PG: Marcus Smart
SG: Jaylen Brown
SF: Jayson Tatum
PF: Al Horford
C: Robert Williams III

Boston Celtics Analysis

After a dominant first round against the Brooklyn Nets, the Boston Celtics have started to look human again, especially on the offensive side of the ball. The defending champion Milwaukee Bucks have exposed Boston’s offense, forcing some of its best players to subpar shooting from the field. Outside of Game Two, Jayson Tatum, and Jaylen Brown have struggled to perform at a high level offensively at the same time, which is essential to the Celtics’ success. Boston’s defense has again been spectacular in this series. Still, there’s only so much it can do against Giannis Antetokounmpo, especially when the Bucks are getting a good whistle at home. For now, the C’s need to stick to the status quo and hope they shoot better because they are doing everything right on the other end of the floor.

Milwaukee Bucks Starting Lineup

PG: Jrue Holiday
SG: Wesley Matthews
SF: Grayson Allen
PF: Giannis Antetokounmpo
C: Brook Lopez

Milwaukee Bucks Analysis

After two mediocre games from Giannis Antetokounmpo, by his standards, we finally got a dominant, MVP-caliber performance from the “Greek Freak.” Giannis finished with 42 points, 12 rebounds, eight assists, two blocks, and two steals on over 50% shooting from the field! As a team, Milwaukee survived yet another poor offensive performance in this series, further proving that it belongs in championship conversations. Defensive consistency has been a substantial issue for the Bucks for most of the season, but they have done a great job this postseason playing better on that end of the floor. They managed to play particularly stellar defense on Jayson Tatum, in particular. Tatum finished with merely ten points, three assists, and one rebound on 4-for-19 from the field in over 41 minutes! Milwaukee could sneak away with a series win if it continues playing defense at this level.