Celtics at Bucks
THE STORY: The Milwaukee Bucks seek to stretch their winning streak to seven games when they host the Boston Celtics on Thursday. Milwaukee won by a season-high 29 points on Tuesday while trouncing the Portland Trail Blazers and appears revitalized after the acquisition of guard Monta Ellis, who makes his Milwaukee debut against Boston. The Celtics are 3-3 on an eight-game road trip that concludes Friday in Philadelphia. Boston defeated the Atlanta Hawks on Monday.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBATV, Comcast SportsNet (Boston), Fox Sports Wisconsin (Milwaukee)
ABOUT THE CELTICS (24-21): Boston is scrambling for frontcourt help after center Jermaine O’Neal elected to have season-ending wrist surgery. The Celtics previously lost forward Chris Wilcox for the season and backup center Greg Stiemsma is playing through a sprained foot. There also is concern veteran Kevin Garnett could wear down if he’s forced to play too many minutes. Garnett has been playing center since O’Neal was last available just prior to the All-Star break. Forward Brandon Bass has played decently as a starter by scoring in double digits in eight of the last 13 games.
ABOUT THE BUCKS (21-24): Milwaukee notched back-to-back road wins by a combined 51 points in Ellis’ first two games. The Bucks shot a season-high 57.8 percent in the victory over Portland and had 35 assists for their fourth straight game of 30 or more assists. Concerns over how the high-scoring Ellis would mesh with his new teammates weren’t an issue in his first two games. Ellis had nine assists against the Trail Blazers and has averaged 16.0 points. “Everybody is out there having fun and sharing the ball,” Ellis said. “With the offense we have, if you pass the ball, you’re going to get it back.”
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Boston has won 14 of the past 19 meetings.
2. The most-recent time Milwaukee won seven or more games in a row was during an eight-game winning streak in 2001-02.
3. Rajon Rondo has four triple-doubles, including a 15-point, 11-rebound, 10-assist effort in a 102-96 victory over the Bucks on Feb. 29.