Giannis Antetokounmpo departed late in the third quarter with a calf injury, but the Milwaukee Bucks held on to defeat the Boston Celtics 104-91 on Tuesday night, despite an NBA record-low total of two free throw attempts.

 
Milwaukee ended a four-game losing streak with Patrick Beverley’s 20 points and 10 rebounds after the Bucks shuffled their lineup, starting the veteran guard ahead of Malik Beasley, who came off the bench for the first time this season.
Antetokounmpo was walking up the court late in the third quarter after a Celtics basket when he grabbed his left calf and sat down. The two-time MVP was helped off the floor, and cameras saw him walking to the locker room on his own.

The Bucks stated that Antetokounmpo sustained a left soleus strain. The soleus is a muscle in the calf.

Antetokounmpo finished with 15 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists, and he attempted the game’s only free throws. He made one of two free throws in the first quarter.

The Celtics were the first team in NBA history to go a full game without shooting a free throw. The previous record for the fewest total attempts in a game was 11.

 
Milwaukee overcame Antetokounmpo’s injury owing to a fast start that allowed the Bucks to build a 24-point advantage in the first half.
Brook Lopez and Bobby Portis both scored 15 points, while Damian Lillard and Khris Middleton each contributed 12. Portis also tallied 10 rebounds.

The Celtics, who had already secured the NBA’s best regular-season record and the top overall playoff seed, were without Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis. Horford was out due to a sprained left big toe, and the Celtics are limiting Porzingis’ minutes after he missed five games last month with a damaged right hamstring.

 

Jayson Tatum led the Celtics in scoring with 22 points. Jaylen Brown had 14 points and 10 rebounds, while Jrue Holiday scored 12 points.

Lopez went 4 of 5 on 3-point attempts in the opening six minutes to set the tone for a first quarter in which the Bucks shot 14 of 18 overall and 8 of 10 from 3-point range. on 8:02 left in the second quarter, the Bucks stretched their advantage to 47-23 on Portis’ dunk.

 

The Bucks led 63-43 at halftime.

  
Antetokounmpo’s injury occurred during a 14-4 Celtics surge to end the third quarter, which helped Boston cut Milwaukee’s lead to 78-67. The Bucks answered by scoring the opening seven points of the fourth quarter, including five consecutive from Khris Middleton.

 

The Bucks maintained a double-digit lead for the remainder of the game.