Getty
It’s time for some win-or-go-fishing basketball, as the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks are set to meet in Game 7 of their first-round matchup at the TD Garden on Saturday night.
The game is scheduled to start at about 8:10 p.m. ET and will be broadcast nationally on TNT. If you don’t have cable or can’t get to a TV, you can watch the game live on your computer, phone or streaming device by signing up for one of the following cable-free, live-TV streaming services:
Hulu With Live TV: In addition to their extensive Netflix-like streaming library, Hulu now also offers a bundle of live channels, including TNT. You can sign up for “Hulu with Live TV” right here, and you can then watch a live stream of the game on your computer via the Hulu website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Hulu app.
DirecTV Now: TNT is included in each of DirecTV Now’s four different channel packages. You can sign up for a free 7-day trial no matter what package you choose, and you can then watch the game live on your computer via the DirecTV Now website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the DirecTV Now app.
Preview
The home team has won each of the first six games of this series, so it’s not exactly surprising to see that the Celtics are favored by 4.5 inside the Garden. Moreover, Game 7’s often come down to coaching, and Boston has the advantage there, too, as Brad Stevens is one of the best in the business.
That said, Game 7’s can also be decided by who has the best player, and that’s why the Bucks can’t be written off, even on the road. They have the best player in the series in Giannis Antetokounmpo, who’s averaging 26.3 points, 9.7 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 1.7 steals and 0.8 blocks per contest, and they have arguably the second best player in Khris Middleton, who’s putting up 23.5 points and shooting a scorching 20-of-32 from three.
Unless one of those two really takes over, though, the Bucks are likely going to need a third option to step up if they’re going to solve a stingy Celtics defense that is allowing just 99.7 points per 100 possessions at home this series (compared to 118.5 on the road). Eric Bledsoe and Jabari Parker have been woefully inefficient over the first six games with effective field-goal percentages of 43.1 and 50.0, respectively. Tony Snell, a 40.3 percent three-point shooter during the regular season, has seen that number drop to 25.0 in the playoffs. Malcolm Brogdon had a big 16 points in Game 6, but but that came after outputs of 5, 10 and 2 in the previous three games.
The Celtics, meanwhile, have had much more balance with five players–Jaylen Brown, Al Horford, Terry Rozier, Jayson Tatum and Marcus Morris–averaging at least 13.0 points per game this series. Brown has led the way with 20.5 per contest, but any one of that quintet is capable of having a big game.
Ultimately, though, it’s a Game 7. Things tend to become far less predictable as players fight to keep their season alive, and this should be a fitting conclusion to what has been an entertaining, back-and-forth series.
Comments