Bucks battle back to beat Raptors in matchup of Eastern Conference's best teams

TORONTO — The Milwaukee Bucks took the early punch. Staggered by the suffocating defense of the Toronto Raptors and barraged by 3-pointer after 3-pointer, the Bucks found themselves in a 12-point hole late in the second quarter.

In the same building where their playoff run ended in the Eastern Conference finals last year, the Bucks again were struggling and looked to be at a loss for how to stem the tide.

But then, the answers came. First, their 3-pointers started falling, then their defense turned up a few notches. A double-digit deficit dwindled to just two at halftime. They kept rolling out of halftime, with their offense demonstrating more crispness and composure, Khris Middleton coming alive and their defense putting the clamps on the Raptors.

From what looked like a rock bottom, the Bucks sprang to life and never looked back, beating the Raptors 108-97 Tuesday night at Scotiabank Arena for their best road win of many this season, one that continued a four-game win streak out of the All-Star break and served as some small measure of vengeance for what happened last spring.

“I mean, you have bad memories in this place and you come in, I mean, it’s kind of habit to let those thoughts creep back into your mind," Middleton said. "But I thought we did a great job just settling down and focusing on play by play, possession by possession.”

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Middleton scored 17 of his team-high 22 points after halftime, many coming off feeds from Giannis Antetokounmpo, who patiently probed Toronto's defense and the unceasing double-teams they threw at him. Antetokounmpo, who logged 38 minutes on the second night of a back-to-back after playing just 25 minutes on Monday against the Washington Wizards, finished with a hard-earned 19 points and 19 rebounds along with eight assists.

Eric Bledsoe chipped in 17 points and Brook Lopez had 15 in the victory.

Milwaukee's game-changing run started in the final three minutes of the second quarter when Marvin Williams connected on a corner three. To that point, the Bucks were just 1 of 11 on 3-pointers in the second quarter while the Raptors had built their lead by making 5 of 10 beyond the arc in that quarter.

Antetokounmpo followed with a triple from the same spot then Middleton, who started the game 0 for 4 from the floor coming off a 40-point game in an overtime win on Monday, knocked down a triple of his own. Antetokounmpo put the finishing flourish on the half with a drive for a layup to cap an 11-1 run.

Out of the break, the Bucks looked every bit their record as the best team in the NBA. Undaunted by the Raptors' physicality, they poked holes in the defense, often with Antetokounmpo hitting players off drives and elbow touches. As they knocked down shots – going 58.8% from the floor in the third – their defense started to get into a groove.

By the three-minute mark of the third, the Bucks had gone on a 36-16 run since falling behind by 12 points a quarter before. It was a lead they would never give up.

"The biggest thing is adversity," Bledsoe said. "I thought we hit that early. We know what it takes, so we're pretty much not in so much of a rush to get the job done. Have to be patient and poised." 

Holding onto the lead wasn't exactly easy, though. The Raptors opened the fourth quarter with a 7-0 run to get within six points. With about nine minutes to go, the margin was down to just five.

That's when Middleton hit a bit of a groove. He sniped an 18-foot pull-up then made a free throw on a technical foul assessed to Kyle Lowry. On Milwaukee's next possession, Middleton was swarmed on the block but somehow stepped through the trees for a tough lefty finish.

Donte DiVincenzo then stepped up, grabbing two offensive rebounds on the same possession and kicking out to George Hill for a three-pointer to cap an 8-0 Bucks run that reestablished Milwaukee's 13-point advantage.

The Raptors had a late chance to get within four, but a three-pointer from Fred VanVleet clanged off the rim and Antetokounmpo buried one of his own at the other end to seal the game.

It was a great win, probably the Bucks' best road victory of the season and in the running for their most impressive win of the season. Yet, the locker room was generally subdued afterward. Williams, just a few weeks into his Bucks tenure, has been struck by how relaxed his new teammates have been and Tuesday night was no different.

The Bucks have bigger goals and if they learned anything from past trips north of the border, it's that the celebrating is better done in the spring.

"Not really," Middleton said when asked if the Bucks relish Tuesday's win a little more than others. "We won here last year during the regular season. That doesn’t guarantee a win in the playoffs, but it’s a great win against a great team that we could see down the road.”