Boston Celtics rally to stomp Milwaukee Bucks, 117-97, and improve to 8-2

November 9, 2026

Effort is difficult to quantify in the NBA. However, there are a few areas of the game that can occasionally reveal its presence. For an example of this phenomenon during the Boston Celtics’ 117-97 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday night, look no further than the final offensive rebound totals.

The C’s corralled a whopping 20 offensive boards at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee while the Bucks only grabbed 9. Such a significant disparity suggests that the Celtics, who trailed 20-6 about halfway through the first quarter, stepped up their effort when things didn’t immediately go their way. In fact, 4 of Boston’s 6 offensive rebounds in the first frame occurred after it went down double digits. Meanwhile, Milwaukee had 0 offensive rebounds in that same span, and just 1 in the entire first quarter.

Because the Celtics dominated the glass, they ended up with 16 more field goal attempts than the Bucks. From there, it’s a math game, as Boston converted on 45 of its 95 shots (47.4 percent from the field) while Milwaukee hit 35 of its 79 shots (44.3 percent from the field).

As for the rest of the margins, the Celtics garnered 12 steals — another effort-related stat — to the Bucks’ 5 and prevailed in the points in the paint battle, 44-28. All of these numbers added up to the Celtics’ third straight win and the Bucks’ sixth straight loss.

Before the now 8-2 Celtics face the 9-2 Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night in a highly-anticipated matchup, let’s take a closer look at the most memorable moments from Boston’s blowout victory captured in images below.

Nov 8, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Boston Celtics center Mitchell Robinson (4) grabs a rebound against Milwaukee Bucks forward Ousmane Dieng (21) in the second half at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images