BOSTON – Milwaukee Bucks include calculations. They know that three points are greater than two. In fact, in the first seven games of the season, they built their attack on this premise by encouraging everyone on the ground to let the shots fly from behind.

This mathematical problem was resolved by Milwaukee on Thursday night, as the Bucks had a taste of their own medicine. The Boston Celtics set franchise records with 24 attempts in three sets on 55 attempts for a 117-113 victory at TD Garden. The defeat eliminated Milwaukee from the ranks of the unbeaten and reinforced the story that the Celtics, even without the injured wing Jaylen Brown, are the team to beat in the East.

Still, the Bucks do not feel far behind.

"We definitely have a lot of confidence, we still think we are one of the best teams," said Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo. "Tonight we did not have a match A or B, probably a C match, but we were still close to winning the game in Boston – one of the best teams in the East. let's always believe in ourselves, keep getting better. "

As unbalanced as the Bucks equation with 62 points and only 9 out of 29 in the long run, Milwaukee had a lot of chances to match or win the game. Fifteen of them were at the back of the pack before the fourth quarter, but they used a 12-0 record to open the period and make things competitive.

After having burned the nets all night, the Celtics fell into the cold, having not scored a throw-in for the final, 3:48. At 1:45 of the end, the Bucks earned less than two points on a Malcolm Brogdon layup.

The successive saves gave the Bucks several chances to tie the game, which they all squandered. Khris Middleton, who scored eight of his 16 points in the fourth quarter after struggling most of the night, battled Kyrie Irving on the bottom line and fell out of bounds. After another stop, Antetokounmpo attacked in transition and missed a superposition in reverse.

With 14.8 seconds left and the Bucks still led by 113-111, Antetokounmpo eliminated Jayson Tatum in an incoming match and Eric Bledsoe recovered the ball. He immediately made a mistake on Tatum, which allowed him to tie the tie with 12.8 seconds.

A villainous TD Garden after his final quarrel with Terry Rozier last spring, Bledsoe was booed violently and then applauded when he missed the first of two free throws.

"Sometimes we have to win games like this," said Bledsoe, who finished with 13 points and seven assists. "We had a chance, I missed one of the two free throws … I have to do a better job by playing a little better in the bottom right."

He made the second and Irving responded by making two free throws on the other end. Needing a pointer to 3, the Bucks decided to give up the shot that they had enjoyed all season.

Without delay, Bledsoe traveled the full length of the field and went to the end, but his attempt to defeat broke out. The Bucks have kept control of the rebound off Boston and Budenholzer has decided to spend the first of his last two downtime.

After a break, the Bucks always went inside, choosing to throw the ball to Antetokounmpo, at fault.

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"He did a good job, the guys did a good job, we like that look," Budenholzer said about a player's tour to Bledsoe's other before continuing to explain the lob at Antetokounmpo.

"There were several options, I think the guys read the situation and made a good decision, there is still a lot of time, he almost had one and 1. That did not quite work out. "

Antetokounmpo scored one in two goals on the line and Al Horford responded by pushing the four-point gap on the other end by burying his two free throws, ending the match. Horford played an important role for the Celtics throughout the night, spacing the ground with 18 shots en route while passing eight assists.

Despite the comeback, the calculation that played against the Bucks all night finally ended as planned.

The equation tilted against Milwaukee almost from the jump. While the Bucks continue their tendency to mainly choose to drop their center on pick-and-roll, the Celtics enthusiastically followed the 3 open pointers that were offered to them. Combine that with a level of hustling and excessive help that Budenholzer has not yet seen and Celtics got 12 points out of 28 in the 3-point range in the first half alone.

"They play a lot of big pick-and-roll ways, so they have a ton and a few in difficult situations," Budenholzer said. "Then, Kyrie creates a lot of 3 in random situations, they have different ways of creating the 3, but the one that is most distinguished is the middle pick and the pick."

The Bucks finally adjusted their coverage in the fourth quarter, doubling the number of handlers in pick-and-roll situations. Boston still scored three points against this look, but it was not at the level of previous periods. Part of this can be attributed to the Bucks and some of it to chance, some open looks refusing to fall.

The early 3-point Boston Dam did not immediately sink the Bucks. On the back of Antetokounmpo, who led the team with 33 points and 11 rebounds, Milwaukee relentlessly attacked the edge and scored 40 points in the paint before half-time. Boston was happy to make this trade, choosing to cut off the chances of a send-off and thus limiting the Bucks – who have averaged over 40 attempts of more than 3 points per game this season – 14 times over. Outside the first half.

This has not helped that the Bucks seem more reluctant to shoot than they have all season.

"Sometimes I thought we were not as confident of letting him fly as before," Budenholzer said. "We may have missed a few shots, then I think we got to a better place where we shot, I think we had 62 points in the painting … We like the 3s, but we also like finish in the painting. "

The Bucks made just three in the first half, but they stayed the course. They only trailed 55-53 at the half.

Then the dam broke.

Irving, who finished with 28 points and six 3 points, splashed a line trio to open the third quarter, then assisted by Tatum. Two minutes into the period, the Celtics opened an 11-point lead and took control of the match, which they would never give up, despite the fact that the Bucks had the opportunity to take over the game. advantage.

The Bucks fought back and fought the calculation, but the calculation – and the Celtics – won. It's a tough experience to live at all times, but the Bucks prefer to learn lessons in November rather than later.

"It's just a game," said Middleton to the question of what he thought of early season games, like those on Thursday. "It's too early, it does not even make 10 games in the season – it's a game out of 82, it's not a playoff game at the moment."

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is part of the USA TODAY network.