Milwaukee Bucks Game Preview: Jan. 27 at Toronto Raptors

Mar 15, 2016; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) drives for the basket against Milwaukee Bucks forward Jabari Parker (12) in the second quarter at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 15, 2016; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) drives for the basket against Milwaukee Bucks forward Jabari Parker (12) in the second quarter at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
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Mar 15, 2016; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Toronto Raptors guard
Mar 15, 2016; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Toronto Raptors guard

The Milwaukee Bucks have lost some winnable games recently. With a back-to-back set of games against the Toronto Raptors and Boston Celtics awaiting, the Bucks now need to start winning lose-able games quickly.

The Milwaukee Bucks may not be a basketball juggernaut or anything, but losing to the Philadelphia 76ers without Joel Embiid is rough. The Bucks can’t afford to linger though, as they’ve got a tough road ahead.

Milwaukee hasn’t handled back-to-backs particularly well this season, and the one coming up on Friday and Saturday will be a challenge. First up is the Toronto Raptors on Friday, followed by the Boston Celtics on Saturday.

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Toronto has been sliding recently, losing five straight games and currently sitting just one game ahead of the Celtics for the second spot in the Eastern Conference. The Bucks might be able to take advantage of that slide and sneak out of Toronto with a win, if they bring their A game across the border.

The Raptors still have an incredible offense, but with DeMar DeRozan sitting it will be a bit harder for Toronto to score tons of points. The Raptors defense has been unable to keep up with the team’s skilled offense–Toronto is 3rd in offensive rating, but 21st in defensive rating.

To see how that and other factors could end up deciding this game for either team, we’ll look at major keys for both squads to win, followed by a Raptor to watch and some predictions.