Running out of gas: Bucks 91, Celtics 88

In a game they led by as many as 17, the Celtics suffered their 8th loss of the season at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks, 91-88. A tough one for sure, but the Celtics did play well and have some things to build on for sure.

Here's an abbreviated recap.

Leandro Barbosa and the Celtics couldn't pull this one
out over the Milwaukee Bucks.

The good:

* It was a tale of two halves for Paul Pierce. The Truth did just about everything he could to will the Celtics to victory, but his efforts came up just short. He finished with a team-high 19 points, grabbed 5 rebounds, dished out 6 assists, and stole the ball 3 times.

* Jeff Green scored 18 points and grabbed 6 rebounds in 22 minutes. His continued aggressiveness is a great sign for the Celtics.

* Considering he spent a considerable chunk of the game handling the ball, Jason Terry did a nice job. He finished with a double-double of 15 points and 11 assists. He also had 3 steals and 3 rebounds. Terry had two good looks at three-pointers to win the game in the final seconds, but he couldn't seal the deal.

* The Celtics guards did a nice job of containing the dynamic duo of Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings. The two combined for 30 points on 34% from the floor. The Celtics starting guards had 28 points.

The bad:

* This loss was a combination of two factors: running out of gas and no Rajon Rondo. Let's start with the first one. Although minutes were not a factor, the effort it took to come back and pull it out clearly drained the C's. They expended so much energy early on that it almost seemed like they wasted it all. Kevin Garnett finished with only 31 minutes, but he did not come out in the fourth quarter during his usual 5 minute cycle, which definitely affected Garnett. The former was only obvious towards the end of the game. With a tight ball game and without their floor general, the Celtics held their own, but you could tell they missed him. He'll make an instant impact on Wednesday.

* The Bucks' bench outscored the Celtics' bench 40-23. Not good.

* The Celtics simply couldn't knock down the shots they were given. They got great looks down the stretch, but they just couldn't convert. Coach Doc Rivers was not upset about the loss after the game, and as Doc Rivers said after the game, "It's always gonna be a make/miss league."

This one will definitely leave a bad taste in the Celtics' mouths. This bad taste will have to sit until they get a chance to redeem themselves on Wednesday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves in Boston.