Milwaukee rallies to put Boston on ropes

Bobby Portis made a putback off Giannis Antetokounmpo's missed foul shot with 15 seconds left, Jrue Holiday snuffed Marcus Smart on Boston's final two possessions and the Bucks beat the Celtics 110-107 on Wednesday night in Boston to take a 3-2 series lead.

Antetokounmpo had 40 points and 11 rebounds, Holiday finished with 24 points, eight rebounds and eight assists and Portis added 14 points and 15 rebounds for the defending NBA champion Bucks.

Milwaukee has a chance to wrap up the Eastern Conference semifinal in Game 6 at home Friday night.

The Celtics led by 14 in the fourth quarter before the Bucks closed the gap, tying it 105-105 on Holiday's 3-pointer with 43 seconds left. Jayson Tatum, who scored 34 points, hit two free throws to give Boston the lead.

Antetokounmpo went to the the line with a chance to tie it and made the first foul shot, then Portis grabbed the rebound of the second and put it in off the backboard to give Milwaukee its first lead since the second quarter.

Smart drove to the basket but Holiday blocked him and came away with the ball, throwing it off Smart while falling out of bounds. Pat Connaughton made two free throws with six seconds left, then Holiday stole the ball from Smart. Jaylen Brown scored 26 points for Boston.

NBA confirms Jokic is MVP: The league announced Wednesday night what had been reported Monday: Denver center Nikola Jokic has won the Most Valuable Player award for the second consecutive season. The Nuggets' big man is the second consecutive international player to win two in a row, after Antetokounmpo — from Greece — was honored in 2019 and 2020.

Nets lay down the law: Kyrie Irving mihgt have to show the Brooklyn Nets he's more than a great basketball player if he wants a future with the team.

General manager Sean Marks made clear that Irving will have to prove a commitment to being available that wasn't there this season.

After Irving missed almost all the Nets' home games because he refused to be vaccinated against the coronavirus, Marks said talks about a potential contract extension this summer will need to include an evaluation of his dedication to play unless he's injured.

“I think those are going to be discussions,” Marks said. “It's a team sport and you need everybody out there on the court.”