Milwaukee Bucks vs. Toronto Raptors: Battle of the Elites in the East

The Milwaukee Bucks have won 9 of their last 10 games and currently sit at 27-10 as they welcome the 28-12 Toronto Raptors for a heavyweight battle at the Fiserv Forum tonight.

Bucks Update

As expected, the Bucks completely thrashed the Atlanta Hawks last night 144-112. That game was over within the first four minutes.

It was an extremely balanced effort for the Bucks against the Hawks last night. Giannis Antetokounmpo breezed to 16 points, 8 rebounds, and 10 assists, and 2 blocks in 19 minutes (lol). Khris Middleton and Malcolm Brogdon scored 19 apiece while combining to shoot 13-of-17 from the field. All 12 players for the Bucks who entered the game scored at least 8 points which is an NBA record.

The Bucks shot 55 percent overall and had 36 assists compared to only 13 turnovers. That’ll do, that’ll do.

The Milwaukee Bucks are completely healthy and will have everyone ready to go for tonight’s gargantuan game against the Raptors in which they can clinch the tiebreaker over them.

Player to Watch: Eric Bledsoe

He’s having fun this season and it has certainly translated to success on both sides of the floor. With the Raptors starting point guard Kyle Lowry out tonight, Bledsoe is in a blowup spot here if he can take advantage of Fred VanVleet and Toronto’s backup guards.

Raptors Update

The Toronto Raptors, like the Milwaukee Bucks, are superbly good at basketball. They’ve alternated between wins and losses the last few weeks, but are still hot on the heels of the first-seeded Bucks.

The Raptors are coming off a tough 125-107 loss in San Antonio to the Spurs in Kawhi Leonard’s return to SA. Leonard poured in 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting and Delon Wright scored 15 points off the bench for Toronto. 7 Raptors scored in double figures, which usually translates to a win but the absence of Kyle Lowry certainly showed. Both teams know this is a game with huge implications, so this could very well end up being a dogfight until the final horn sounds.

The Raptors will be without Kyle Lowry and Jonas Valanciunas tonight against Milwaukee.

Player to Watch: Pascal Siakam

We already know Kawhi Leonard is going to get his, but containing Siakam is no easy task. He’s one of the most electrifying big men in the NBA and has added a totally different element to this Toronto team. He’s really blossomed into a nice player this season. He’s good for at least one monster dunk per-game.