MILWAUKEE -- When Semi Ojeleye fell to the Boston Celtics at the No. 37 pick in the second-round of the draft this summer, most everyone at the time saw it as a steal. Against the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night at the MECCA, we saw why. 

The rookie didn't even score a point, missing both of his two shot attempts, but he was key to the Celtics' victory. That's because he contributed in a big way on the defensive end, providing some key stops in the fourth quarter when the Celtics made their game-changing run. And they weren't just any stops -- they were stops against Giannis Antetokounmpo, arguably the early favorite to win MVP after his incredible start. 

"It's great," Ojeleye said about defending the Greek Freak. "You always want to go up against the best and know you can play against them."

Ojeleye certainly knows now that he can play against Antetokounmpo. 

At the beginning of the fourth quarter, Ojeleye entered the game with a mission from Brad Stevens to check the Bucks' All-Star forward, and he did a phenomenal job. Just watch these two possessions to get an idea of how well he was guarding Antetokounmpo.

First, with just under 10 minutes to go, Antetokounmpo brings the ball up the left side of the floor, and the Bucks basically clear out for him to go to work against Ojeleye. Anetokounmpo starts by backing the Celtics forward down, trying to simply overpower him and get into the lane for an easy look at the basket. 

As he quickly learns, however, Ojeleye might be a rookie, but he has veteran strength. After getting stonewalled with his backdown attempt, Antetokounmpo has to settle for a fadeaway jumper that he clanks off the rim. 

One minute later, Antetokounmpo decides to try his luck against Ojeleye again. It begins in almost exact fashion as the first possession, with Giannis coming down the left side of the floor all by himself. This time, however, the Bucks' star man tries to blow past Ojeleye with speed. Nothing doing. Ojeleye moves his feet well, cutting Antetokounmpo off, and forcing him to circle back. Antetokounmpo then tries again to back Ojeleye down, but is deterred by his brute strength, and eventually throws the ball to a teammate. 

As the shot clock winds down, a desperate Bucks team tosses it back to Antetokounmpo to try and muster up something from the possession, but yet again, Ojeleye proves a stout defender. He cuts off the baseline drive and forces Antetokounmpo into another missed jumper. 

So there we have, in the span of little over a minute, Ojeleye stopping Antetokounmpo three different times in one-on-one situations, and doing it with both strength and quickness. Few players in the league can claim to have stopped Antetokounmpo from both backing them down and from driving around them. 

Ojeleye's work shutting down Antetokounmpo (who never scored while Ojeleye was on the floor in the early part of the fourth quarter) was key in helping the Celtics go on an 11-3 run to start the fourth that extended their lead to double digits. The Bucks never got closer than five the rest of the way, and the Celtics went on to win 96-89. 

"When Semi was on [Antetokounmpo] for five or six minutes I thought he did a really good job," Stevens said after the game of his rookie's defensive work. "That's kind of what we need Semi to be. We need him to be a guy that can go in and guard some of these guys with his body and athleticism."

How did the inexperienced rookie -- he had only played 37 NBA minutes prior to Thursday's game -- get ready for such an important role? Ojeleye credited his work in the film room and on the practice floor. 

"You just try to prepare, watch film, always be ready," Ojeleye said following the win. "Try to take that seriously, know their tendencies, and do what you can. You have an idea in walk through who you might guard, and they tell you who to key on in film, so you prepare, but you never know. So you just try to stay mentally prepared."

Ojeleye better stay prepared, because after his defensive performance Thursday night, he might quickly become an important role player for this Celtics squad.