Bucks end Celtics win streak in unexpected blowout

AP Photo/Aaron Gash
https://www.wcvb.com/article/bucks-beat-celtics-dec-11-2025/69704441
The Celtics 5-game winning streak came to an unexpected end against a Giannis-less Bucks team. A disastrous 2nd half would end what was a promising stretch of games and send Boston back to the drawing board. 

In the first quarter the Celtics would come out firing, scoring 35 points on 62% from the floor and 63% from three. Jaylen Brown and Jordan Walsh were perfect from the field, combining for 21 points on 8/8 shooting. 
Neemias Queta would play just under 5 minutes in the first quarter, and it was evident on the defensive side of the ball. The Bucks would get four offensive rebounds and have 12 points in the paint, which led to them scoring 29 early points. Bobby Portis would go a perfect 4-4, foreshadowing how the rest of the game would play out. 
The offense began to slip in the 2nd, shooting just 43% from the floor, but they still managed to score 32 points off the back of 10 free throws and 9 second-chance points. The three-pointers were not falling, so the offense began to attack the basket more, leading to 10 points in the paint as well as 10 free throws. 
The Bucks stayed in it, with Kyle Kuzma scoring 14 of their 31 points. They got to the rim at will once again, scoring 14 points in the paint, and capitalized off Celtics mistakes with 7 points off turnovers. At halftime, the Celtics led 67-60. 
Things would quickly turn into disaster in the third, with the Celtics getting outscored 27-13. They couldn't buy a bucket, shooting 4/22 and 0/12 from three. Jaylen Brown had 9 of the 13 points and hit 3 of the 4 made shots in the quarter. Without a doubt, it was the worst offensive quarter of the season for the Celtics. 
Kyle Kuzma and Bobby Portis continued to give the Celtics problems, totaling 18 points on 8/10 shooting. Joe Mazzulla opted for a small-ball lineup, playing Queta just 4:36 in the third, and it backfired, with the Bucks scoring 14 more points in the paint. Milwaukee now led 87-80 after three quarters. 
The offensive struggles would continue for the Celtics, scoring just 21 points on 33% from the floor and 21% from three. Sam Hauser was particularly bad, shooting 0/6 from the field and committing 2 turnovers. Bobby Portis would score 11 more points before the bench unit came in to finish the game, ending the Celtics win streak with a 116-101 final score. 
The good
Jaylen Brown and Jordan Walsh played a perfect first half, scoring 34 points on 12/12 shooting, with Walsh grabbing 2 offensive rebounds and 3 steals. Payton Pritchard also played well in the first half, scoring 11 points on 50% from the floor and from three, as well as dishing out 4 assists. 
The bad
Things could not have gone worse for the Celtics offensively in the second half, scoring just 34 points on 26% shooting and missing their first 16 three-pointers. Jaylen Brown and Neemias Queta were the only players to make more than 1 basket the entire second half, which was ultimately why they lost. 
While the offense was poor in the second half, the defense was bad all game, in particular against Kyle Kuzma and Bobby Portis. The pair combined for 58 points on 24/30 shooting. They got points inside and outside the arc whenever they wanted against one of the top-rated defenses in the NBA. 
The paint defense was extremely lackluster, allowing 50 points on 25/36 shooting. Joe Mazzulla has opted for more small ball lineups in recent games to a positive effect, but it failed miserably on Thursday night. 
Conclusion
This loss ends a 5-game win streak and has brought a surging team quickly back down to earth. Nothing went right in the second half on both sides of the ball, which led to the worst loss of the season. With another 3 days of rest, they have a chance to regather themselves and bounce back against the top team in the east in the Detroit Pistons.