Boston Celtics vs. Milwaukee Bucks Game 5: Prediction Against The Spread, Odds For Series Clincher

The Boston Celtics had their chance to make the second-round series with the Milwaukee Bucks a competitive one. They blew it with two consecutive losses at home, and their 2019 NBA playoff run should come to an end Wednesday night on the road.

Milwaukee is nearly a double-digit favorite in Game 5, according to OddsShark. The nine-point betting line is more than fair considering how thoroughly the Bucks outplayed the Celtics at TD Garden.

Boston won the series opener going away, stunning the Eastern Conference’s No.1 seed in a 22-point blowout. Milwaukee’s Eric Bledsoe told ESPN that the team wasn’t prepared for the intensity of Game 1. Maybe the Bucks needed a game to get back into the groove following a first-round sweep that was never in doubt.

Whatever the case, Milwaukee is back to looking like the team that was the NBA’s best for 82 games, leaving little reason to believe Boston will be able to survive the potential series clincher.

Giannis Antetokounmp is performing like the player that ended the regular season as the MVP favorite. After Al Horford and Boston’s help defense made life extremely difficult for Antetokounmpo in Game 1, all he’s done is average 33.3 points, 12.7 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game on 60 percent shooting. The superstar is hitting open teammates, and they are making the Celtics pay.

The Bucks are making 14 three-pointers per game, which is more than their nightly average that led the East in the regular season. Khris Middleton has made 50 percent of his threes to average 19.3 points per game. Role players like George Hill, Nikola Mirotic and Patrick Connaughton have all stepped up.

Boston’s role players were up-and-down all year, and that’s continued against the league’s top defense. Gordon Hayward has been virtually invisible with 17 points in the last three games. Jayson Tatum has scored five points or fewer twice and has missed all but one of his 13 three-point attempts.

Kyrie Irving has simply been bad. The guard is shooting 36.9 percent from the field and playing poor defense. The Celtics don’t have a prayer when the gap between their best player and the Bucks’ top star is this wide.

Maybe more of Irving’s shots will fall in Game 5. You can be sure that Antetokounmp will continue to play like an All-Star.

Even though Boston’s role players have more postseason experience, the rest of the Bucks’ roster has proven to be much more reliable.

The Celtics haven’t exactly excelled under pressure this season, and they are in trouble in a must-win game Wednesday night.

Game 5 Prediction: Milwaukee over Boston, 115-100