Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 35 points and grabbed 12 rebounds while leading the Milwaukee Bucks to a 130-112 win over the visiting Toronto Raptors on Friday night.
Damian Lillard added 26 points as the Bucks earned their sixth win in seven games. Bobby Portis contributed 15 off the bench while seven Bucks scored at least nine points.
RJ Barrett put up 21 points and 10 rebounds to pace Toronto, which had a two-game winning streak end and lost for the sixth time in eight games. Bruce Brown scored 17 points, Kelly Olynyk had 15 and Jakob Poeltl (12 points, 10 rebounds) and Scottie Barnes (10 points, 10 assists) each had a double-double.
Milwaukee started the game on an 8-0 run capped by a 3-pointer and a 14-footer from Lillard. The Bucks committed just one turnover in the first quarter, after which they held a 37-22 lead.
Lillard’s early success continued as he scored 22 points in the first half alone, going 4-for-5 from 3-point range. Milwaukee went into the halftime break up 72-55.
In the third, Toronto kept up with Milwaukee as both teams going back-and-forth. Antetokounmpo dominated down low, scoring 12 points in the period, and the Bucks were on top 107-91 entering the final stanza.
Toronto started the fourth quarter on a 6-0 run to bring the deficit down to 10 after a tip-in from Barnes.
However, Milwaukee quickly responded with the next five points. The Bucks subsequently went up 117-99 lead on a 3-pointer from Taurean Prince with 6:46 to play.
From there, the Bucks cruised to their third straight victory. Milwaukee took advantage of a foul-happy Raptors defense as the Bucks attempted a season-high 41 free-throws, sinking 33.
Milwaukee completed a three-game season series sweep against Toronto after the Raptors took two of three last season. It is the Bucks’ first regular season series sweep of Toronto since the 2012-13 campaign.
