Amid ‘really good vibes,’ surging Bucks host Raptors
The suddenly hot Milwaukee Bucks will return home for the first time in more than two weeks when they face the Toronto Raptors on Sunday afternoon.
The Bucks opened their post All-Star break schedule in New Orleans, where they pulled away late to beat the Pelicans 139-118 on Friday night.
The win was Milwaukee's third in a row and sixth in the past seven contests.
It was a balanced scoring attack for the Bucks, led by 27 points each from Ryan Rollins and newly acquired Cam Thomas in addition to 25 points and seven assists from Kevin Porter Jr.
Bobby Portis added 17 points and 11 rebounds.
"We're just being aggressive, looking for our shots on all of our three-level scorers," Rollins said of the guards' ability to find the best matchup. "Some situations where you may feel like it's an advantage that they have, we just call a quick boomerang or just give them space and let them work out."
Thomas has made a strong first impression in his three games since being signed by the Bucks as a free agent this month after being released by the Brooklyn Nets.
In addition to his 27 points on Friday, he scored 12 in a victory over Oklahoma City on Feb. 12 and 34 in just 25 minutes in a win over Orlando they day before.
"The players and coaches embraced me as soon as I got here. Everyone was like just be you and play your game; that meant a lot to me," said Thomas, 24. "The vibes are really good; we're playing meaningful basketball."
Toronto, meanwhile, got off to a good start in its post-break schedule as it took down the Bulls in Chicago 110-101 on Thursday. It was Toronto's third win in its last four games.
Brandon Ingram led the way with 31 points and also had eight rebounds and six assists. Teammate Scottie Barnes added 14 points, nine rebounds and five assists.
"Usually the first game (after the break) is finding the rhythm, getting the rust off," Toronto coach Darko Rajakovic said. "What I'm really proud of is our guys staying the course during the whole game. We kept finding ways to compete."
Ingram is averaging a team-high 22.0 points a game this season, and Barnes is next at 19.2 while leading the team in rebounds at 8.4 a game.
"I thought it was important for me to be aggressive whether the shot was going in or not and also just having a presence on the defensive side," Ingram said. "As a leader I want to pick my spots, talk when it's important, not just rah-rah."
On the injury front, Toronto's report is clear outside of Chucky Hepburn, who is out with a knee injury.
Milwaukee was without Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf) and Myles Turner (calf) in Friday's game. Coach Doc Rivers reported that Antetokounmpo practiced but has not done any live five-on-five work. Rivers added that there is still no firm timetable for the star's return, but "he's close."
This is the final matchup between Toronto and Milwaukee this season as the Raptors look for the season-series victory, having won two of the three games.
In the most recent meeting, on Dec. 18, Toronto won 111-105 behind Ingram's 29 points.