Toronto, ON (My Sportsbook) - Andrea Bargnani scored 23 points to guide Toronto to a 115-106 win over the
Milwaukee Bucks.
Chris Bosh added 18 points and 14 rebounds for the Raptors, who have won back- to-back games for the first time since February 22 and 24. Jose Calderon chipped in 19 points and 11 assists, while Anthony Parker scored 18, and Shawn Marion netted 17 points and nine boards.
"It was good teamwork and balanced scoring with everybody sharing the basketball," said Raptors coach Jay Triano. "I thought Chris was the key He only takes eight shots, but we gave him the ball in the post and they were sitting in his lap."
Richard Jefferson scored 22 for the Bucks, who fell three games behind Chicago for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Charlie Bell went 4-of-9 from three-point range for 20 points for Milwaukee, which has lost three in a row and eight of its last 10 games. Ramon Sessions scored 18 and dished out seven assists for the Bucks, who have also dropped five in a row on the road.
"Those guys did a great job of continuing to fight and knocking down shots, but I think that may have been Toronto letting up a bit," said Jefferson. "We just didn't do what we needed to do."
Each team thrived from the three-point line with the Raptors going 12-of-24 and the Bucks 13-of-27, but Toronto essentially won the game at the foul line. The Raptors went 35-of-40 from the charity stripe, compared to 7-of-9 for the Bucks.
The Raptors carried a 25-20 lead after the opening quarter and spent most of the second ahead by double digits. Bell's three-ball had the Bucks within 35-28, but the Raptors responded with a dominant 22-10 run, capped by a Parker three-pointer with 2:21 left in the half.
Toronto was ahead 65-44 at the intermission and cruised throughout the third, on the way to a 94-71 cushion moving to the fourth before Milwaukee caught fire. The Bucks got within nine as Joe Alexander made two foul shots inside two minutes left, but Parker made three free throws and Calderon sank two from the charity stripe down the stretch.
"They hit a lot of threes," said Bosh. "In desperation mode like that sometimes shots fall. We kept our composure and made our free throws. We got a couple of stops when we needed it and sealed the deal."
Game Notes
Bucks guard Luke Ridnour (back spasms) did not travel with the team to Toronto, but is expected to join the team for Friday's game in Orlando...The Bucks play the second leg of a four-game road trip against the Magic and will finish the trek with games at Miami and New Jersey...The Raptors improved to 2-1 on a five-game homestand with upcoming contests against Oklahoma City and Chicago to finish the set...Milwaukee, which fell to 11-25 outside of the Bradley Center, hasn't won a road game since February 17 at Detroit...Toronto improved to 15-20 at the Air Canada Centre...Bucks head coach Scott Skiles was honored as an inductee into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame on Wednesday. Skiles wasn't in attendance for the ceremony so he could coach this game. Gregg Popovich currently of the San Antonio Spurs and Steve Alford currently of the University of New Mexico were also inducted...Jason Kapono had 14 points for Toronto, which Damon Jones scored 12 for Milwaukee.