BOSTON — Even with Khris Middleton back in the Milwaukee Bucks (11-11) lineup, the Boston Celtics (19-4) still managed to pull out the win Friday night, final score 111-105.

What made the win more impressive for the Celtics is that Kristaps Porzingis (leg) was out and the C’s didn’t have much interior defense. However, Al Horford played big for the C’s defensively and on the offensive side. In the fourth quarter with under two minutes left, Horford hit a big three-pointer to extend the C’s lead 105-101. Jrue Holiday would hit a running floater as the shot clock expired with 25.2 seconds left to extend the lead 107–102.

The first half of the game saw Damian Lillard go crazy with 20 points and three 3-pointers to help the Bucks lead by four points after two quarters. Lillard finished with 31 points. The C’s were in a shooting slump and missed 14 straight three’s but eventually started to knock it down from deep in the third quarter.

The Celtics defense finished strong, forcing the Bucks to go 1-11 from the field down the stretch. Jayson Tatum finish with 34 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. Neither team ever led for double digits during the game and it gave a tough playoff feel that the C’s eventually pulled out to go 3-0 against the Bucks this season. If these two teams will face one another again, it’ll be in the playoffs.

“This was a tough win, we didn’t necessary shoot the ball as well as we wanted to, especially in the first half…” said Tatum right after the game. “But really picked it up on the defensive end and that played a big part.”

Jrue Holiday finished with 20 points, Jaylen Brown had 25, and Sam Hauser had 16. Payton Pritchard struggled tonight and didn’t score a point.

For the Bucks, they played possibly their best game of the season. Giannis Antetokounmpo finished with 30 points and 11 boards, but struggled down the stretch thanks to the defensive effort from Horford and the rest. Middleton finished with 11 points in 23 minutes. The Celtics once again appeared cool, calm, and collected down the stretch and were able to make stops and not turn the ball over. This is a positive sign from both teams.