Raptors lose to Bucks for second time this season

TORONTO — On a night that shone a spotlight on Kyle Lowry’s offensive struggles, the Toronto Raptors dropped a 104-99 decision to Milwaukee on Sunday, their second loss this season to the Bucks.

Serge Ibaka had 22 points, while Kawhi Leonard had 20, but it wasn’t enough as the Raptors (21-7) lost for the second straight game. Fred VanVleet added 19 points, while Pascal Siakam had 17. Lowry had zero points on 0-for-5, plus seven assists and five rebounds.

Giannis Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez had 19 points apiece to lead the Bucks (17-8).

The Raptors had hoped to gain a leg up on what could be an Eastern Conference post-season opponent, particularly after suffering their first loss of the season to the Bucks, 124-109 on Oct. 29 in Milwaukee. But the visitors led for much of the night, and took 79-74 advantage into the fourth quarter, stretching it to 11 points less than 90 seconds later.

But when Ibaka drilled a three-pointer with 5:18 to play -then raised his arms to the fans signalling them to cheer -it pulled the Raptors to within three points.

A three-pointer from VanVleet, then one from Leonard that bounced off the far side of the rim before falling through the hoop sent the Raptors into the edge-of-yourseat final two minutes with a 97-94 lead. Malcolm Brogdon quieted the crowd with back-to-back threes to give the Bucks a three-point lead. A VanVleet basket made it a onepoint game, but Antetokounmpo drove to the hoop for a dunk with 12 seconds to play, then Leonard missed on a three-point attempt that sealed the Bucks’ victory.

The Raptors were coming off a 106-105 overtime loss in Brooklyn on Friday.

Lowry has had a rough stretch, coming into the night shooting a woeful 8-for-37 in four previous appearances, and his offensive struggles were obvious again Sunday.

Asked about Lowry’s slump before the game, coach Nick Nurse said he was hoping to see Lowry shoot the lights out Sunday.

“To me, it’s all about the rhythm. You take the shots in the rhythm of our offence when they present themselves. Don’t turn them down, don’t over-pass it, you’re a primary scorer for us, right?” Nurse said. “Let’s see some of those deep bombs in transition because that means he’s really feeling it. I don’t want him to say, ‘Jeez, I haven’t shot well for three games so I’m going to limit my attempts.”’

The four-time all-star guard did exactly that however, limiting his offence to five shots, all of them three-point attempts.

The lead changed hands five times in the first quarter before the Raptors cobbled together an eight-point advantage late in the frame. They took a 30-25 lead into the second.

The Bucks opened the second quarter with a 7-0 run, and a three-pointer by Ersan Ilyasova put Milwaukee up by eight. The Raptors chipped away at the difference over the frame’s final five minutes, and trailed 51-49 at halftime.

The Scotiabank Arena included Max Holloway, who beat Brian Ortega the previous night to win back-to-back UFC featherweight titles, and Max Kerman and Mike DeAngelis of the Arkells.

The Raptors head west for a tough four-game road swing beginning Tuesday against the Clippers in L.A.