Milwaukee Bucks: Takeaways From Loss to Toronto Raptors

Defending Lowry

To start the game, Matthew Dellavedova was given the duty of guarding Kyle Lowry. Lowry has proven to be one of the best point guards in the Eastern Conference, making it a difficult match up for the Bucks guard.

It became apparent quickly that the Raptors lead man was too much for the Dellavedova. On multiple occasions, Miles Plumlee was left to contest an open lay-in attempt after the All-Star guard had left the Australian in the dust.

Towards the end of the first half after Malcolm Brogdon had picked up a couple of fouls of his own in trying to guard Lowry, Jason Kidd gave Tony Snell the challenge of guarding the Raptors number one option. His length made things more difficult, so Kidd also started the second half with Snell on Lowry.

In keeping with the same theory, Jason Kidd threw Rashad Vaughn to the wolves as the next guard to take on the All-Star. Vaughn could not continue his great defensive efforts of the second quarter, getting burned on his first two possession for easy lay-ins.

The Bucks coach then re-inserted Brogdon to save Vaughn’s confidence. He put forth a nice effort, but also was unable to slow him down.

It was one of those nights where no matter what they tried, the Bucks just didn’t have an answer for Lowry. He finished the game with 32 points, shooting 9-18 from the field, 3-6 from three, and 11-14 from the line.