Eastern Conference Recaps, March 19: Brook Lopez, Giannis Antetokounmpo Led Milwaukee Bucks To Win Against Raptors

With teams closing in on the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, the Milwaukee Bucks made sure to create distance.

The Bucks’ frontcourt had 20-plus points each in a 118-111 victory against the Toronto Raptors. Brook Lopez led the way with 26 points and Khris Middleton had 20. Giannis Antetokounmpo recorded 22 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists, his fourth triple-double this season.

“We settled down, we got back in control,” said Lopez, who outscored Toronto 17-16 in the fourth quarter. “We talked about the third quarter-fourth quarter break. They just shot more times than us. We were shooting just as well, or better than them from two and three. We just had to take care of the ball and keep them off the offensive glass.”

Fred VanVleet had 23 points and 11 assists for the Raptors and O.G. Anunoby scored 22 points.

NEXT RAPTORS GAME AGAINST THE HEAT: Mar. 28 in Toronto

OTHER NOTES:

-Despite a late run by the Brooklyn Nets, they were unable to snap a two-game losing streak after a 108-102 loss to the Denver Nuggets. Michael Porter led the Nuggets with 28 points and Jamal Murray had 25. Nikola Jokic recorded 22 points, 17 rebounds, and 10 assists, his 26th triple-double of the season.

Mikal Bridges led the Nets with 23 points and Nic Claxton had 19.

NEXT NETS GAME AGAINST THE HEAT: Mar. 25 at Miami

-The San Antonio Spurs erased a 24-point deficit to grab a 126-118 victory against the Atlanta Hawks. Devin Vassell led the way with 29 points while Keldon Johnson had 29 points and a season-high 12 rebounds. While Trae Young struggled, Dejounte Murray scored 22 points for the Hawks.

Cory Nelson is a contributor to Inside The Heat. He attended Northern Virginia Community College. He can be reached at corymckenzienelson@hotmail.com or follow him on Twitter @CKenzyNelson. You can also check out his personal blog HERE.