Boston Celtics

Morning sports update: Aaron Rodgers trolled Paul Pierce about his Celtics-Bucks prediction

Also: No dents in Tuukka, Tom Brady and Randy Moss posed in a photo of NFL royalty, and Celtics 3-1 trivia.

Paul Pierce ESPN Celtics
Paul Pierce in 2018. Matthew J. Lee / The Boston Globe

By Hayden Bird

3 minutes to read

The Bruins posted a 3-0 shutout of the Blue Jackets to win Game 6 in Columbus on Monday night. Boston advances to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2013.

At TD Garden, the Celtics fell to the Bucks 113-101 in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Milwaukee now leads the series, 3-1. Game 5 will be played on Wednesday at 8 p.m.

And the Red Sox couldn’t quite get back to an even record, dropping Monday’s matchup with the Orioles, 4-1.

Aaron Rodgers hasn’t forgotten Paul Pierce’s takes: After the Celtics rolled to a Game 1 victory over the Bucks in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, Paul Pierce — now an ESPN analyst — claimed that the series was “over.”

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Since then, the Bucks have won three straight to put the Celtics on the brink of playoff elimination.

Packers quarterback — and Wisconsin sports fan — Aaron Rodgers tweeted a response to Pierce:

The former Celtic has already been criticized for jumping to conclusions too quickly.

“If I ever wrote after you were down 1-0 in a series that it was over, you would have me up against the grill,” said Jackie MacMullan to Pierce on ESPN. “You would never stand for that, not for one minute. The unpredictability of the Celtics that you’re talking about is their biggest strength and also their greatest weakness, because when they start missing shots, I’ve never seen a team handle that so poorly.”

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Pierce, for what it’s worth, has kept a sense of humor about his prediction, referencing “The Office” after the Celtics lost Game 3:

Trivia: The last time the Celtics mounted a 3-1 playoff series comeback was the 1981 Eastern Conference Finals against the 76ers. Who was second on the team in scoring during the series after Larry Bird? (Check the bottom of the article for the answer).

Hint: He went on to win the only championship of his Hall of Fame career that season. Also, he was a second round pick in the NBA draft.

More from Boston.com:

Not a dent in sight

: Tuukka Rask made 39 saves in the Bruins’ shutout win over the Blue Jackets. Despite the best attempts by the opposition — its players and coach — to knock him off his game, Rask kept his composure. [The Boston Globe]

Pastrnak and Chara celebrated:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BxJOR54h4bd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

There are 1,647 passing and receiving touchdowns represented in this photo:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BxIYjK1lCZD/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Pablo Sandoval hit a home run, stole a base, and pitched a scoreless inning (but the Giants lost, 12-4):

On this day: In 1917, Babe Ruth out-dueled Washington Senators ace Walter Johnson to give the Red Sox a 1-0 win. Ruth’s two-hit shutout was complemented by his sacrifice fly ball, which resulted in the game’s only run.

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Writing in the Boston Globe the next day, Edward F. Martin described the performance as, “perhaps the best game of his Major League career.”

Also on this day, in 2003, Arsenal began its record 49-game unbeaten run with a 6-1 thrashing of Southampton:

Daily highlight: A perfectly placed opening goal from David Krejci got the Bruins on their way to a playoff win:

Also, this:

Trivia answer: Nate “Tiny” Archibald