ROLLER COASTER
Toronto lets Milwaukee hang around, though backcourt of Lowry, DeRozan too much
It wasn’t the same team that surprised the Spurs, but it was enough to beat the Bucks,
It first showed itself to the Raptors in the second quarter of their date with the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday night, a golden opportunity to put their stamp on what wasn’t much of a contest at that point.
The Bucks looked absolutely horrid — turnovers piling up, their chemistry eroding with each failed possession.
Passes zipped through the key far off their intended targets, easy putback baskets rolled off the rim and shots were blocked at the other end of the floor.
The visiting Bucks were ripe for the knockout, playing sloppy, lost basketball the way an inexperienced boxer’s tired hands leave the chin exposed.
The Raptors jabbed away and built up an impressive 49-31halftime lead, outscoring the Bucks 38-27 after a slow first-quarter start.
In a 90-83 Raptor win, that decisive knockout punch never found its mark.
DeMar DeRozan carried the scoring load for the Raptors with a gamehigh 27, out-duelling Bucks shooting guard Khris Middleton and his 26 to lead Toronto to its third victory in a row.
At 15-9, the Raptors stand on the positive side of the mirror image of the Bucks’ 9-15, but Friday night’s win lacked punch, lacked some of the key things Raptors coach Dwane Casey has spent the last few weeks stressing to his team.
“In no way, shape, fashion or form did I think it was going to be a 20point game,” Casey said.
“We lost our focus a bit. We expected the team to come out in the second half and make a run. I thought we responded with some positive plays down the stretch.”
Of course, the win is the most important thing and all that anyone will remember about this game by the time the 1-23 Philadelphia 76ers — a constant reminder of just how bad things can be in sports — make it to the Air Canada Centre on Sunday evening.
But for the Raptors, who have a history of following up an impressive win like Wednesday’s over San Antonio with a poor showing against a lesser opponent, Friday’s second half shouldn’t feel like mission accomplished.
The Raptors pushed their lead to 19 in the first two minutes of the third quarter before Middleton and the Bucks got hot and outscored them 29-21. They crept back within four, down 86-82, off of an O.J. Mayo three-pointer, the result of a blooper-reel quality series of turnovers between both teams. DeRozan and Kyle Lowry (12 points, seven rebounds, five assists) scored after that to keep the Bucks at bay and to preserve the win.
“I think it wasn’t about getting the blowout, it was about getting the win for us,” Lowry said. “Yeah, we’ve got to find ways to stomp on teams, to make sure we keep going, but it’s the NBA. They were going to make a run. You’re not going to blow teams out unless you’re just shooting a blistering number. They kept fighting, that’s the NBA.”
Lowry overcame 5-of-16 shooting to help his team, with DeRozan picking up the slack offensively. He paced the Raptors through their slow firstquarter start and had 16 at the half.
“Even when Kyle’s not scoring, he does everything else at a high level,” DeRozan said. “Even if he’s not making shots, (I tell him to) keep shooting, he still does everything else. He’s always going to come through big.”
Lowry’s left-handed layup with 24 seconds left and his defensive rebound with 14 seconds sealed the win.
“We were up19, but we were expecting to take the ball and have them around 30,” said Raptors centre Bis- mack Biyombo, who had 11 points and nine rebounds.
Had the Raptors lost that game, it would have been a different story, he said.
“I’m glad we found a way, even if they came back from the 19 points,” Biyombo said.
“That’s what matters. That’s a great thing, seeing everyone smiling after the win is always great.”
“They made their run,” Casey said. “I thought we withstood it.”