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Raptors continue game one struggles, fall to Bucks

Xinhua, April 16, 2017 Adjust font size:

Toronto Raptors dropped their eighth consecutive game to open a playoff series in the team's 97-83 loss to Milwaukee Bucks in the first game of their first round playoff series on Saturday evening.

With the loss, Toronto fall to 1-11 all-time in the opening game of a playoff series and has never won a game one in the first round. Their only victory occurred in 2001 when they defeated Philadelphia Sixers in the second round.

Raptors head coach Dwane Casey, who has been in the lead bench role for the past five playoff series, was not impressed with the team's effort, particularly in the second half.

"There are no excuses. I don't know if we played hard enough to deserve to win," he said after the loss. "I thought they played hard longer than we did. I thought they played with more force for longer than we did," he added.

"Our second half was just abysmal. We didn't play with any pace or rhythm," Casey continued. "A lot of that led to tough shots, challenged shots. You can't play that way and it'll always bite you in the behind."

In the second half, Casey's squad managed 32 points while shooting a mediocre 20.0 percent (7-for-35) clip, compared to the 51 points on 50.0 percent (20-for-40) in the first half.

All-Star guards DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry were a large part of the struggle, shooting a combined 2-for-15 (13.3 percent) in the second half for 11 points. DeRozan finished with a team-high 27 points, while Lowry scored just four points, his lowest single-game output in a Raptors playoff game.

Lowry is coming off wrist surgery that sidelined him for 21 games from the end of February until early April. Having played just four regular season games since the injury, Casey hopes his point guard can regain his pre-injury form.

"We got to go the way Kyle goes. He's our guy, he's our All-Star," said Casey. "He's got to continue to be aggressive, make or miss. A lot of our stuff goes around him being aggressive. He's got to begin doing that.

The series will continue on Tuesday evening for game two in Toronto. Raptors hold an all-time record of 5-6 in game two's. Endit