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Milwaukee Bucks (13-11) at Boston Celtics (13-12)
Regular Season Game #26 – Home Game #14
Friday, December 21
7:30 PM ET
TV: CSN-NE, FSN-WI, NBA-LP 753(MIL)/754(BOS)
Radio: WEEI, WTMJ
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Probable Starting Matchups Point Guard 
vs
Rajon Rondo vs Brandon Jennings
Shooting Guard 
vs
Jason Terry vs Monta Ellis
Small Forward 
vs
Paul Pierce vs Marquis Daniels
Power Forward 
vs
Kevin Garnett vs Luc Richard Mbah a Moute
Center
vs
Jason Collins vs Larry Sanders
Celtics ReservesJared Sullinger
Brandon Bass
Courtney Lee
Jeff Green
Leandro Barbosa
Chris Wilcox
InjuriesAvery Bradley (shoulders) out
D-LeagueKris Joseph
Fab Melo
Bucks BenchMike Dunleavy
Drew Gooden
Doron Lamb
Ekpe Udoh
Ersan Ilyasova
John Henson
Joel Przybilla
Samuel Dalembert
Injuries Beno Udrih (ankle) out
Tobias Harris (elbow) out
Team Connections:Bucks Assistant Coach Joe Wolf played for the Celtics during the 1992-93 season…
Bucks Trainer Marc Boff worked for the Celtics for eight seasons as an assistant trainer and physical therapist
Armond Hill played for the Bucks during the 1982-83 season
Brandon Jennings, Doron Lamb and Rajon Rondo attended Oak Hill Academy
Drew Gooden and Paul Pierce both attended the University of Kansas
Bucks Assistant Coach Jim Boylan and Celtics Head Coach Doc Rivers both attended Marquette Universtiy
Courtney Lee and Samuel Dalembert were teammates in Houston during the 2011-12 season
Jason Terry was teammates with Joel Przybilla in Atlanta during the 2003-04 season
Jason Terry and Drew Gooden were teammates in Dallas during the 2009-10 season.
Marquis Daniels played for the Celtics from 2009-12
Game NotesThe Celtics look to stay above .500 as they host the Bucks for their 4th and final meeting in the regular season. The Bucks have won one game on the road and one game at home while the Celtics won one game in Milwaukee and are looking to tie the series at 2 games apiece.
The Celtics are looking to win their second straight game and their 6th in a row at home. The Bucks are coming off a loss and hoping to get back into the win column. The Celtics are 5-5 in their last 10 games while the Bucks are 6-4 in their last 10. The Celtics are 9-4 at home while the Bucks are 6-6 on the road.
Doc shook things up in the last game by inserting Jason Collins and Jason Terry into the starting lineups. It worked out well against the Cavs with Collins easing some of the pressure on KG and Terry playing better along side of Rondo. I expect him to use the same lineup in this game but then again, you never know.
The Celtics need to continue their dominance at home and keep their momentum going as they begin their road trip. They will have off until Christmas Day with time for rest and practice and so should be able to give a good effort in this game.
Key Matchups 
vs
Rajon Rondo vs Brandon Jennings
Jennings is a good young PG who is working to make a name for himself in the league. Jennings has talked trash in every game against the Celtics. You might even remember him shouting trash at KG as he was heading to the locker room after a game in his rookie year. Rondo should look to make a statement here and win this match up in a big way.
vs
Jason Terry vs Monta Ellis
Ellis is capable of putting a lot of points on the board and JET needs to clamp down defensively to try to contain him. On the other end, Ellis can be a lazy defender at times and it might open up the court for JET to get some easy shots.
Honorable MentionJason Collins vs Larry Sanders
In the last game between these two teams, Larry Sanders had 18 points, 16 rebounds and five blocks off the bench. It's no surprise that he's now in the starting lineup for the Bucks. Assuming that Doc starts the same lineup as in the last game, Collins should help to limit Sanders from getting to the hoop as much.
Keys to the Game DEFENSE! - The Celtics must tighten up their defense and everyone must play their role in the team defense. The Bucks can put up a lot of points and they also defend well so the Celtics must play tough defense if they want to get this win.
Rebound - The Celtics must crash the boards to prevent the Bucks from getting second chance points. Rebounding is all about effort and when the Celtics put out the effort on the boards that effort seems to carry over into all the other areas of their game. They have to
crash the boards as a team.
Limit Turnovers- The Celtics turn the ball over way too much in spurts. They get a lead and then they get careless and turn the ball over several times in a row. . They lose track of their defender and lose the ball to them. They dribble into traffic and lose the handle. All of this could be fixed with more focus and discipline on the part of each player. The Bucks are 3rd in forcing turnovers, forcing opponents to turn it over 16.8 times a game. The Celtics must take care of the ball.
Bench Play - The Celtics reserves have struggled to find their roles and to be consistent. Jeff Green especially must be more aggressive and play better. That goes for every player on the team as well, but especially the second unit.
Be Aggressive - The Celtics must be the more aggressive team. They have to be aggressive going to the basket and not settling for jumpers. They have to be aggressive on defense and on the boards. They have to be aggressive in going after loose balls. Tommy kept yelling for them to be aggressive in the last game and he's right. That's what it's going to take for them to get back to winning on a consistent basis.
X-FactorsHome Court & Motivation
The Celtics are playing their final home game before their 4 game road trip that begins on Christmas Day in Brooklyn. Doc has said that they aren't a very good team which should be motivation for them to pick it up a level. Keeping their home win streak should also be motivation to win this one.
Celtics Basketball
