Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum power Boston Celtics' bounce-back performance for Game 2 win over Milwaukee Bucks

BOSTON — When the Celtics needed their two stars the most, they both came through. Jaylen Brown got things going, and Jayson Tatum finished it off.

After Boston didn't match the physicality of the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 1 of their East semifinal series on Sunday, the Celtics came out with a much different attitude on Tuesday, controlling the game from the opening tip and leading wire-to-wire in a 109-86 victory.

«We knew we had to come out and play like our season was on the line,» Brown said, «and we did that.»

Brown finished with a game-high 30 points and knocked down a playoff-career-high six 3-pointers. He set the tone for the team early on as they looked to bounce back from a lackluster performance in Game 1.

«We adjusted well,» Celtics coach Ime Udoka said. «We learned some things from Game 1 and felt like we knew we didn't react accordingly to the way that we're playing. Two big teams but we haven't been outmuscled like that all year. I think our guys took pride in that, took that to heart and we knew we would come out with the right effort tonight.»

Leading that charge was Brown, who had a playoff-career-high 25 points in the first half. He was key as Boston opened up an 18-3 lead and never looked back.

«It's the playoffs. Survival of the fittest,» Brown said. «Every game counts.»

In Game 1, the Celtics made only 10 two-point field goals, a franchise low for a playoff game or a regular-season game. Udoka lamented about how the team strayed from the mid-range game. That wasn't the case on Tuesday, as Brown hit three mid-ranges early on to set the tone there.

Udoka said he spoke to Brown and Tatum about that prior to the game.

«We knew those are open,» Udoka said. «You don't have to over penetrate and drive into