Bucks at Raptors
DeMar DeRozan is looking more like himself and his Toronto Raptors have a chance to seize control of their Eastern Conference first-round series when they host the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 5 on Monday. Following a dismal Game 3 performance in which he missed all eight of his shot attempts and the Raptors lost by 27 points, DeRozan righted the ship with 33 points in a Game 4 series equalizer Saturday.
He chipped in nine rebounds, five assists and four steals as Toronto re-established itself on the defensive end. "We came out extremely aggressive on both ends out the gate. We had to," DeRozan told reporters. "Last game was eating away at us and we were just trying to get out there and redeem ourselves." While DeRozan was up, Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo was down in Game 4, finishing 6-for-19 from the floor and turning it over seven times. "(They were) just throwing bodies," Antetokounmpo told the media. "Just missing shots; I was just missing shots. That's it, just being physical like the last three games and I was just missing shots. That's all."
TV: 7 p.m. ET, NBATV, TSN (Toronto), FSN Wisconsin (Milwaukee)
ABOUT THE BUCKS: Milwaukee lamented its inability to establish any sort of rhythm in Saturday's loss and is intent on correcting the issue in the return to Toronto. "Our tempo was extremely slow," coach Jason Kidd told reporters. "Give them credit; they slowed us down. It wasn't a high-scoring game. No one could make a shot. But our tempo in that second half came to a halt. Our energy level was low, for whatever reason. We've got to fix that going into Game 5." A bright spot was Tony Snell burying half of his 10 3-point tries, which gives him 13 makes in 26 attempts from long range during the series.
ABOUT THE RAPTORS: Aside from DeRozan (12-for-22 from the field) and center Jonas Valanciunas (5-for-5), the rest of Toronto's players combined to shoot 30.2 percent in Game 4. Norman Powell stepped into the starting lineup and hit all three of his 3-point attempts in a 12-point showing, and he feels more prepared to help the cause going forward. "They're throwing me in to provide something with defensive toughness, energy and pace," he told the media. "It was a big game for me to come out and show them they can throw me in there whenever, and whatever happens in Game 5, I'll be ready for it whether it's coming off the bench or starting."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Antetokounmpo, who shot 77 percent from the foul line during the regular season, is 12-for-24 in the playoffs.
2. Raptors PF Serge Ibaka is averaging eight points on 7-of-24 shooting over the last two games.
3. Milwaukee is shooting 41.1 percent from 3-point range in the series, compared to 31.3 percent for Toronto.