Raptors snap 15-game skid and extend slump for Bucks
Gary Trent Jr. scored 31 points and the Toronto Raptors snapped a 15-game losing streak with a 117-111 victory over the slumping Milwaukee Bucks on Friday night.
Milwaukee, playing without the injured Giannis Antetokounmpo, lost for the fifth time in its last six games, with the last three coming against Washington, Memphis and Toronto, who are all well below .500. Antetokounmpo sat out with a left hamstring injury.
Trent was 7 of 15 from 3-point range and helped the Raptors build a 14-point lead in the third quarter before the Bucks mounted a rally. But point guard Damian Lillard fouled out with 1:48 left and Toronto held on to take the season series from Milwaukee, 2-1.
RJ Barrett added 26 points and Immanuel Quickley had 25 for Toronto.
Lillard led the Bucks with 36 points and six assists, while Khris Middleton had 21 points. Middleton drilled a 3-pointer to bring the Bucks within two points with 54.5 seconds left, but he missed a potential go-ahead 3-pointer moments later and the Raptors clinched the victory with four free throws.
Bobby Portis had 19 points and 10 rebounds for Milwaukee.
The Bucks fell to 15-16 since Doc Rivers took over as coach for Adrian Griffin on Jan. 26.
Milwaukee remains second in the Eastern Conference, leading Cleveland by one game and Orlando and New York by two with five games remaining for each team.
The Bucks host the Knicks on Sunday night and have two games remaining with Orlando, one at home next week and the season finale on the road on April 14.
“I think in this case, you do want the second seed,” Rivers said before the game. “Could Giannis play tonight? Absolutely. You've got to make a choice. And our choice is health first and seeding second.”
Rivers said Antetokounmpo went through shootaround on Friday morning and after an evaluation of his sore hamstring it was determined he would sit out. Guard Pat Beverley missed his second straight game with a right ankle injury.
Trent returned for the Raptors after missing two games with back spasms and Ochai Agbaji joined him in the starting lineup after sitting out the previous three with a right hip contusion. Barrett had missed 10 of the previous 11 games.
UP NEXT
Bucks: Host New York on Sunday.
Raptors: Host Washington on Sunday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
5 rescued after avalanche triggered north of Whistler, B.C. RCMP say
Emergency crews and heli-skiing staff helped rescue five people who were caught up in a backcountry avalanche north of Whistler, B.C., on Monday morning.
Quebec fugitive killed in Mexican resort town, RCMP say
RCMP are confirming that a fugitive, Mathieu Belanger, wanted by Quebec provincial police has died in Mexico, in what local media are calling a murder.
Bill Clinton hospitalized with a fever but in good spirits, spokesperson says
Former President Bill Clinton was admitted Monday to Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington after developing a fever.
Trump again calls to buy Greenland after eyeing Canada and the Panama Canal
First it was Canada, then the Panama Canal. Now, Donald Trump again wants Greenland. The president-elect is renewing unsuccessful calls he made during his first term for the U.S. to buy Greenland from Denmark, adding to the list of allied countries with which he's picking fights even before taking office.
UN investigative team says Syria's new authorities 'very receptive' to probe of Assad war crimes
The U.N. organization assisting in investigating the most serious crimes in Syria said Monday the country’s new authorities were “very receptive” to its request for cooperation during a just-concluded visit to Damascus, and it is preparing to deploy.
Pioneering Métis human rights advocate Muriel Stanley Venne dies at 87
Muriel Stanley Venne, a trail-blazing Métis woman known for her Indigenous rights advocacy, has died at 87.
King Charles ends royal warrants for Ben & Jerry's owner Unilever and Cadbury chocolatiers
King Charles III has ended royal warrants for Cadbury and Unilever, which owns brands including Marmite and Ben & Jerry’s, in a blow to the household names.
Man faces murder charges in death of woman who was lit on fire in New York City subway
A man is facing murder charges in New York City for allegedly setting a woman on fire inside a subway train and then watching her die after she was engulfed in flames, police said Monday.
Canada regulator sues Rogers for alleged misleading claims about data offering
Canada's antitrust regulator said on Monday it was suing Rogers Communications Inc, for allegedly misleading consumers about offering unlimited data under some phone plans.