NBA Playoffs 2018-19: 3 Talking Points from Boston Celtics vs Milwaukee Bucks - Game 5

The Milwaukee Bucks ended the Boston Celtics' misery by winning Game 5 and, with it, the series. The Celtics have struggled for chemistry throughout the season and that showed over the course of this series as well where they have been completely outplayed.

The Bucks dominated throughout and emerged victorious by a 116-91 margin. Giannis Antetokounmpo again destroyed the Celtics on both ends.

The Bucks took a 13-point lead into the half and further added to their advantage in the fourth quarter, cruising to victory in the end. Last season, the Bucks lost in Game 7 to the Celtics, but this time around they have been a much more dominant team right from the regular season.

After struggling in Game 1 of the series, the Bucks totally dominated the rest of the matches, winning four straight to make it to the Eastern Conference final where they will take on either the Raptors or the 76ers.

Let's have a look at the key talking points from this match:

#1 Great effort on the defensive end by the Bucks

The Milwaukee Bucks never allowed the Celtics to get settled, constantly applying the pressure on their shooters

The Bucks had the best defensive rating in the regular season and they have carried that form into the playoffs too.

The Celtics shot just 31.2% from the field and 18% from the 3PT line. The Bucks also had 8 steals and 7 blocks in the match, with none of the Celtics starters managing to shoot greater than 50% for the match.

The Bucks now await the winner of the ongoing series between the Raptors and the 76ers. The Raptors currently hold a 3-2 lead in the series with Game 6 to be played in Philly.

#2 Disappointing end to Kyrie Irving's season

Irving was very poor in the series

Kyrie Irving is a great individual talent. He is by far the best player on the Celtics team, but he has struggled to gel with his teammates. The Celtics play better without Irving in the lineup and it now looks as though he might just have played his last game in the Celtics uniform.

Kyrie finished this match with 15 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist on a very inefficient 6-21 shooting display from the field and 1-7 shooting from the 3PT line.

Al Horford also struggled in this match. He finished with 9 points on 4-13 shooting from the field and 1-5 shooting from the 3PT line. Jayson Tatum, who starred in last year's playoffs, also struggled this season. He finished this match with 14 points on 3-10 shooting from the field.

The Celtics have a lot to ponder heading into the off-season.

#3 Giannis Antetokounmpo and his supporting cast

Giannis has been unstoppable this season

Giannis Antetokounmpo played like a man possessed throughout this series.

In 31 minutes of action in Game 5, he finished with 20 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists. He also had 2 blocks and 2 steals and was a beast on both ends of the floor. Giannis is probably going to end up with the regular season MVP award and he looks like a man on a mission in the playoffs.

He also got great support from his All-Star teammate Khris Middleton who ended with 19 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Eric Bledsoe, Malcolm Brogdon, George Hill and Ersan Ilyasova also ended up scoring in double digits.

Hill, especially, has been sensational in the series. In this game, he added 16 points in just 21 minutes of action from the bench, shooting 6-10 from the field.