Celtics defeat Bucks by stalling a late rally.

Jayson Tatum scored 31 points as the Boston Celtics held off a comeback from the Milwaukee Bucks to win 122-119.

Milwaukee had trimmed the deficit to five points shortly after the break, but the Celtics surged ahead by 21 points late in the third quarter.

However, the Bucks defeated Boston 36-21 in the last frame to set up an exciting finale.

It was unsightly. They went on a run in the fourth quarter because we didn’t play as well as we could have,” Tatum said.

“In the NBA, no lead is secure. We’ll take it, though, because a victory is a win.”

Boston, who leads the Eastern Conference, has won seven straight games and is currently 11 wins ahead of the second-place Bucks with a record of 55-14.

While top player Giannis Antetokounmpo was out of the lineup for Milwaukee, Damian Lillard scored 32 points and Bobby Portis added 24.

The Sacramento Kings defeated the Toronto Raptors with ease, 123-89, while the Miami Heat defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 107-104.

The Oklahoma City Thunder, who lead the Western Conference, easily defeated the Utah Jazz, 119-107, while the Indiana Pacers defeated the Detroit Pistons 132-103.

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