BOSTON –Entering the game with 4:06 to play in the first quarter, Marcus Smart was greeted by a loud applause.
It was the first time he set foot on to the court in a competitive game – beating up the team’s assistants in 1-on-1 and 2-on-2 games doesn’t count – since March 11.
No one knew what to expect.
And then within seconds of hitting the floor, Smart was doing Smart-like things like … hitting the floor for a loose ball that wound up in Boston’s possession.
And with the game tight down the stretch, there was Smart again, on the floor, corralling an almost-loose ball before getting it to Al Horford for a basket that put Boston up 86-79 with 28.1 seconds to play.
It was that kind of game for Smart whose return, to no one’s surprise, sparked the Celtics to their best defensive performance of the playoffs and most importantly, a Boston win.
The Celtics are now one victory away from moving on to the next round following a 92-87 win over the Bucks.
Boston Celtics
Al Horford had a double-double of 22 points and 14 rebounds with Jaylen Brown and Terry Rozier chipping in with 14 and 16 points, respectively.
Smart, returning to action for the first time since March 11, had nine points, five rebounds and four assists in 25 minutes.
For the Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo had a near triple-double of 16 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, and Khris Middleton led all scorers with 23 points.
Boston had a nice cushion to start the fourth quarter, but the Bucks opened with a 7-0 run, trimming Boston’s lead down to 72-68 with 8:44 to play.
A Boston time-out was just what the Celtics needed to re-focus and return to the floor re-energized to withstand the Bucks and their attempts at a fourth-quarter comeback.
Boston came back with a 7-2 spurt capped off by a driving lay-up by Marcus Morris, making it a 79-70 game with 5:46 to play.
Milwaukee has shown tremendous grit throughout the first four games, so why would game five be any different?
A 3-pointer by Eric Bledsoe brought the Bucks within 81-77, only for Brown to split a pair of free throws and get a lay-up to make it an 84-77 game with 1:49 to play.
The Bucks kept coming but the Celtics refused to give up control of the game.
Boston had a strong finish, which was in stark contrast to how the game began.
Boston fell behind 6-1 to start the game, but gradually climbed back into the game and eventually went ahead 7-6 on a Jayson Tatum.
The Celtics were able to increase their lead in the first in large part by stringing together good possession on both ends of the floor which put Boston up 23-15 at the end of the first quarter.
Boston’s played with a lead for all of the second quarter, peaking at 16 points before settling on a 48-37 halftime lead which ended with a pair of Smart free throws.
The Bucks made things interesting in the third quarter, but it wasn’t Antetokounmpo or Middleton leading the charge.
It was Shabazz Muhammad who scored 11 points in the third, including a 3-pointer that trimmed Boston’s lead to 61-57.
But the Celtics came right back with seven straight which included a 3-pointer from Brown, making it a 68-57 game with 2:24 left in the quarter.
The Celtics maintained its double-digit cushion going into the fourth quarter with a 72-61 lead.