Giannis Antetokounmpo says Bucks-Raptors clash had a playoff feel
Wednesday 26 February 2020 09:53, UK
Giannis Antetokounmpo said the Milwaukee Bucks' visit to the Toronto Raptors, the team that beat them in last year's Eastern Conference Finals, had a playoff feel to it.
Antetokounmpo and the Bucks took down Toronto, wiping away some of the bad memories from a painful trip north of the border in the 2019 postseason.
Antetokounmpo had 19 points and 19 rebounds, Khris Middleton scored 22 points and the Bucks beat the Raptors 108-97 on Tuesday night in a match-up between the top teams in the Eastern Conference.
Behind by 12 points late in the second quarter, the Bucks rallied to beat the Raptors in their first game in Toronto since losing Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals last May, completing a disappointing collapse after winning the first two games of that series at home.
"You always remember the last time you played here, the feelings you had," Antetokounmpo said. "It was definitely on my mind." The reigning MVP Antetokounmpo added that he felt the game had a playoff feel to it.
The Bucks beat the Raptors 115-105 when the teams met in Milwaukee on November 2. They will face each other again in consecutive games on April 1 and 3.
Milwaukee improved their season record to 50-8 while Toronto tasted defeat at home for the first time since January 12, ending a nine-game run.
It was a rough night for Raptors starters Serge Ibaka and Kyle Lowry. Ibaka made 2-of-15 shots and Lowry shot 2-for-12. Ibaka went 1-for-10 from three-point range while Lowry was 1-for-7.
"Tonight it just didn't go in," Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. "Serge had like 21 straight great games. You are going to have that one once in a while and tonight wasn't his night."
Overall, Toronto set a franchise record with 52 three-point attempts, making 18 of them. "Let's say 40 of them were probably decent," Nurse said.
Lowry, Terence Davis and Chris Boucher all scored 10 points for the Raptors.
Toronto trailed 84-71 to begin the fourth, but Davis scored five points as the Raptors closed the gap with a 7-0 spurt over the first 90 seconds of the final quarter.
Fred VanVleet's four-point play with 2:23 made it 101-94 and the Raptors forced a steal on Milwaukee's next possession but VanVleet missed a three. Antetokounmpo hit a triple at the other end, restoring the double-digit advantage.
Toronto were up 51-39, their biggest lead of the game, after OG Anunoby dunked over Antetokounmpo with 2:58 to go in the second. Milwaukee closed the quarter with an 11-1 spurt, cutting the deficit to 52-50 at half-time.
"Obviously, the end of the second quarter was really big for us," Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said. "We were not having a very good half."
After missing 10-of-11 attempts from three-point range in the second, the Bucks hit three in a row from distance during their closing surge. All five of Antetokounmpo's points in the quarter came during that stretch.
Middleton made just one of five shots in the first half but went 3-for-3 in the third and scored nine points as the Bucks outscored the Raptors 34-19 to take an 84-71 lead into the fourth.
The Bucks topped 100 points for the 82nd consecutive game but failed to score at least 110 for the first time in 19 games, snapping the longest such streak in the league this season.
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