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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
MILWAUKEE (AP) -- The Milwaukee Bucks took advantage of Vince
Carter not being on the court in the second half, and hung on for
their fourth straight victory.
"When he went down, it helped us," Glenn Robinson said after
he scored 31 points to lead the Bucks to a 104-97 victory over the
Toronto Raptors on Friday night. "But, they didn't give up though.
We had to play good basketball to beat them."
Raptors coach Lenny Wilkens said it was his decision to sit
Carter late in the third to rest his sore left knee after turning
in a strong performance against the New York Knicks on Thursday
night.
"I just took a precaution," Wilkens said. "He bumped it. His
knee was a little sore. He wanted to play, but I decided I'd try
him a little bit and it didn't look like we were making progress
getting back into the game, so I decided I'd sit him down. We've
got a game Sunday."
Carter, who scored 15 points, said it will be a game-time
decision if he plays against the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.
Against the Bucks, Carter thought his teammates did well even
with him on the bench icing his left knee.
"We still played very well and had a chance to win," he said.
"We just didn't knock down the shots when we needed them."
While the Raptors had trouble connecting down the stretch,
Robinson didn't.
He shot 3-of-5 from the floor and sank all six of his free
throws in the fourth to help extend the Bucks' winning streak to
four games, the team's best in two seasons under George Karl.
The Raptors cut the Bucks lead to five points six times in the
final nine minutes, but almost everytime Robinson was there to
answer with either a clutch basket or pressure free throw.
"I'm in a pretty good rhythm right now," said Robinson who
shot 12-of-22 and grabbed seven rebounds. "I think our team is in
a good rhythm. We just want to keep it going."
Ray Allen scored 14 points, while Robinson had 12 of his in the
fourth quarter, as the Bucks (12-11) moved above .500 for the first
time this season. After starting 3-9, Milwaukee has won nine of the
last 11 games and four straight.
Ervin Johnson, who has become one of Karl's favorite reserves,
came off the bench and scored a season-high 11 points. He finished
with 11 rebounds and stopped the Raptors dominance on the boards.
Toronto had 17 rebounds in the first quarter to the Bucks' nine,
all while Johnson was still waiting to enter the game.
Antonio Davis scored a season-high 25 for the Raptors.
The Bucks became the first opponent in Toronto's last eight
outings to reach 100 points against the Raptors. On Thursday night,
Toronto held the New York Knicks to 68 points, the fewest the
Raptors have ever allowed.
Carter, who had a season-high 48 points against the Bucks a
month ago, was 6-of-17 and had hit a 3-pointer early in the third
that pulled Toronto to 54-51. Wilkens pulled him against his wishes
about six minutes later.
A shot by Alvin Williams capped an 8-0 run and pulled Toronto to
80-75 with 7:55 remaining. After the Bucks called a timeout,
Robinson scored on a drive and Sam Cassell hit a jumper that made
it 82-75 with 7:13 left. Milwaukee never let its lead slip below
five points again.
The Bucks used an 11-2 run late in the third and led 72-64
heading into the final quarter. Robinson hit two shots, Lindsey
Hunter connected from the corner for a 3-pointer, and Scott
Williams had a tip-in.
Davis had two baskets and a free throw, and Charles Oakley added
a jumper to put the Raptors ahead 62-61 with 5:01 left in the third
quarter.
Game
notes
The Raptors' Davis, in his eighth year in the NBA, slammed
home a miss by Corliss Williamson with 8:32 left in the third to
top 5,000 career points. ... Carter was 5-of-12 in the first half.
... The Raptors outrebounded the Bucks 17-9 in the first quarter.
... The Bucks' back-to-back victories over Los Angeles and Utah
marked only the fourth time in 20 years that the Bucks beat both
teams on the road during the same season.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Toronto Clubhouse
Milwaukee Clubhouse
RECAPS
Cleveland 103
Indiana 95
Dallas 112
Philadelphia 94
Charlotte 103
Washington 89
Sacramento 104
Boston 81
Utah 89
New York 58
Minnesota 99
Detroit 90
Atlanta 85
Chicago 74
Milwaukee 104
Toronto 97
LA Clippers 98
Phoenix 88
Portland 106
Orlando 96
Seattle 99
Miami 81
LA Lakers 98
Vancouver 76
FROM
ATHLETESDIRECT
Vince Carter Official Site
Mark Jackson Official Site
Lenny Wilkens Official Site
George Karl Official Site
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