Photo courtesy of Reuters
The Toronto Raptors rolled into Milwaukee on Monday to take on the inconsistent Bucks. Entering the game, the Raptors were 3-7 in their last ten and coming off a disappointing loss to the New Orleans Pelicans.
Raptors guard, Terrance Ross found his groove early in the game igniting the Toronto offense with a 360 dunk. Kyle Lowry contributed with 18-points, meanwhile forward Patrick Patterson and centre Jonas Valanciunus combined for 26 rebounds.
Milwaukee made things interesting in the third quarter after trailing by eight at halftime. Led by guard Brandon Knight (20 points), the Bucks scored 45-points in the second half to test the young Toronto squad.
Late in the fourth quarter, with the shot clock running down, Terrence Ross hit a baseline jumper to give Toronto a 90-87 lead with 26.4 seconds to go. It was a big shot for the Raptors, but an even bigger one for Ross after being benched the entire second half against the Pelicans; the night before.
Bucks forward, Ersan Illyasova made one last effort with 5.8 seconds left in the game; grabbing a rebound and springing guard O.J. Mayo down the floor. Raptors guard, Lou Williams reacted quickly to the fast break attempt forcing Mayo to lose control of the ball, and securing the twenty-seventh win of the year for the Raptors.
The Toronto Raptors travel Memphis on Wednesday to take on the Southwest Division leading Memphis Grizzlies. Tip off is at 8pm.