The short-handed Toronto Raptors came from as many as 15 points down to top the host Milwaukee Bucks 121-107 on Friday night in an NBA Cup game littered with career highs.
Coming off a dismal third-quarter performance in which they were outscored 41-15 by Denver on Wednesday, the Raptors seized control in the third quarter this time. Allen Graves put Toronto ahead for the final time off a cutting layup and before converting the ensuing free throw to cap off a 9-0 run to make it 82-79 with 2:17 left in the third.
Alijah Martin gave the Raptors their first lead of the game off a 3-pointer with 5:41 remaining in the third quarter. Tyler Herro put the Bucks back up 72-71 with his only 3 of the game on the next possession.
Martin put up a career-high 27 points off the bench. RJ Barrett exploded in the second half to finish with 27 points of his own. Jamal Shead had 10 points and a career-high 16 assists for Toronto. Jakob Poeltl and Collin Murray-Boyles put up 19 points each in the frontcourt, Poeltl adding 11 rebounds, to boot.
Herro led the way for Milwaukee with 23 points and 10 assists in his team’s fifth straight loss. Rookie Brayden Burries added a career-high 21 points to go with 11 rebounds. Jaime Jaquez Jr. had 14 points, Kyle Kuzma put up 13, AJ Green netted 12 and Ryan Rollins added 10.
After a difficult outing on Wednesday (eight points, five rebounds), Poeltl bounced back with a dominant fourth quarter (11 points, seven rebounds) to help put the game out of reach.
In addition to Kawhi Leonard (knee), who has been sidelined for nearly two weeks, Scottie Barnes (groin/adductor) and Immanuel Quickley (hamstring) were surprise injury absences for the visitors.
Milwaukee led by as many as 14 in the first quarter with an early-game barrage, but a 14-3 Raptors run helped bring the score to 29-24 after one. The teams combined to shoot 5-for-23 from behind the three-point line.
Burries netted eleven of his team’s 31 points in the second quarter as Milwaukee extended its lead to 60-51 at the half.
The result marked Toronto’s fourth straight win over Milwaukee.
