Four things the Bucks must change quickly to keep their playoff hopes alive

The Milwaukee Bucks returned home from Boston on Wednesday with nothing to show for their four days out east.

They battled the Boston Celtics into overtime in Game 1 in their first-round NBA playoff series but couldn't secure the victory. Then in Tuesday's Game 2, the Bucks put together an embarrassingly listless display on the way to a one-sided loss. They'll take a 2-0 series deficit into Friday's 8:30 p.m. Game 3 tip-off at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

The Bucks — and the Bradley Center itself — are promised at least two playoff games this weekend, with Game 4 of the best-of-seven series scheduled for noon Sunday. Anything more than that would depend on the Bucks clawing their way back into the series.

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With a day off Wednesday heading into a practice Thursday, the Bucks have a lot to figure out if they're going to defend their home court this weekend and avoid getting swept out of the first round for the fourth time in 14 trips to the playoffs in the Bradley Center era.

Here is a look at four things the Bucks need to change to avoid being swept.

Bring the effort

The phrase "energy and effort" was the unofficial motto of the Bucks during Jason Kidd's tenure and usually discussed most when they were lacking. Through two games, and especially during Game 2, the Bucks failed to consistently display the minimum level of urgency required in a playoff series.

Hustle plays, offensive rebounds, turnovers and 50-50 balls have skewed in favor of the Celtics in large part because Boston's been the team doing the hustling, pursuing those 50-50 balls and making things happen. Even getting back on defense has been an issue for the Bucks at times, with multiple players giving up on plays.

This type of letdown has been frustratingly common for the Bucks this season, even in high-stakes games. They were lackadaisical in a March loss in Orlando — with the Magic playing on the second night of a back-to-back no less — and got beat at home by the Brooklyn Nets late in the regular season. Both games were winnable and necessary as the Bucks tried to push for better seeding in the playoffs.

How that's continued in the playoffs — outside of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton who have put the teams on their backs — is a question no one in the locker room has a clear answer for but needs to sort out quickly.

“The fire’s lit, it’s just a matter of going out there and getting results," Bucks guard Jason Terry said.

Added center John Henson: “We’ve just got to be locked in. It’s nothing new for a couple guys, so we’ve got to set a better example and be ready to play Friday.”

Stay out of the hole, especially early

The Bucks trailed by 10 points or more in 46 of their regular-season games this season, a number that represents 56.1% of their schedule and the highest mark of any playoff team. Milwaukee won just 12 of those games (26.1%) and won 32 of 36 games (88.9%) in which they never trailed by double digits.

Thus, keeping lapses to a minimum and the score tight would be hugely beneficial for the Bucks' chances of winning.

However, they put themselves behind the 8-ball early in both games in the series so far by melting down toward the end of each first quarter. In Game 1, Boston closed the first quarter on a 15-0 run to take a 12-point lead into the second, with most of the damage coming after Milwaukee made its first substitutions.

In Game 2, the Celtics used a 12-5 run over the final four minutes to end the first quarter with an 11-point advantage.

Asked when the effort dropped off in Game 2, Bucks point guard Eric Bledsoe offered just two words in reply: “First quarter.”

That can't happen again if Milwaukee's going to turn the series around.

Get something from the bench

As referenced, the Bucks' starters have done their job of keeping things tight. That has applied not only to the first quarters of the first two games, but their entirety. When Milwaukee's starters — Bledsoe, Tony Snell, Middleton, Antetokounmpo and Henson — have shared the court, they've outplayed the Celtics.

The problem over the first two games has come when Bucks coach Joe Prunty has gone to his bench. Prunty has stuck with similar substitution patterns, including Antetokounmpo coming out of the game and Jabari Parker entering late in the first quarter, something that hasn't worked and will require a change — either in the substitution pattern or players rising to the occasion.

Parker hasn't been the only letdown off the bench, but he's been the most pronounced. He's logged just 25 minutes in the series and scored two points, looking out of sync and disengaged.

According to BrewHoop.com analytics writer Dean Maniatt, Milwaukee's starters played 10 minutes together in Game 2 and had a plus-27 net rating. All of those minutes came against the Celtics' starters. All of the Bucks' non-starter lineups were net negatives.

“I think we’ve got to do a better job of limiting those other guys coming in off their bench," Terry said. "I take a huge responsibility in our bench group — we have not shown up here in two games. Don’t expect the same when we go home.”

The Bucks did get a couple positive contributions in Game 2 as Shabazz Muhammad and Sterling Brown saw their first playoff action. At the very least, they brought the urgency other players have lacked and made a case for more minutes going forward.

“Some guys showed some things, some guys did not, but in a series and in the postseason you have to be ready to play right when you step on the floor," Prunty said of players off the bench. "This isn’t a find my way, get comfortable — your rhythm has to start right when you get into the game.”

Figure out how to stop Brown and Rozier

Jaylen Brown, a second-year guard, has averaged 25 points per game and put up a personal playoff best 30 points on Tuesday. He's cutting for dunks and layups, making field goals at a 51.2% clip and when the lanes aren't open he's 7 of 17 (41.2%) on three-pointers.

Rozier has been similarly stellar, even if Bledsoe purports not to know who he is. Through two games, Rozier is averaging 23.0 points and 5.5 assists while going without a turnover in his 78 minutes.

Brown and Rozier, Boston's starting backcourt, have outscored their Milwaukee counterparts, Bledsoe and Snell, 96-25, in the series.

If the Bucks can cut down the high-percentage looks for Brown and Rozier, while finding a defender — Bledsoe, Malcolm Brogdon, Matthew Dellavedova or someone else — who can pester Rozier into making poor decisions, Milwaukee will give itself a much better chance to win.