Rotowire

Raptors Uprising GC is the unquestioned favorite heading into the bracket round of the TIPOFF, powered by AT&T. If you combine their season and tournament record, they’ve recorded 13 wins and zero losses, and there’s no sign of them slowing down anytime soon. Any opposing team should be considered a mismatch, but Bucks Gaming was one of the more unlikely teams to punch a ticket forward in the tournament. This series looked like it might be a potential cakewalk for Toronto, and that’s exactly how it turned out, as they handled the Bucks with ease in a 2-0 sweep.

The Raptors won the first game of the series handily, but you can’t fault the Bucks for trying. Against another team, their valiant efforts might have resulted in a W. They managed to fight back within striking distance at several points in the game, and put their opposition off-balance, causing them to commit a surprisingly high 13 turnovers. Ultimately the Raptors overpowered them defensively and simply outscored them over 24 minutes. Kenny Got Work came just shy of a double-double in the 84-64 win with 31 points and nine assists, and Sick One put up a 20-point, 15-rebound double-double while making some supreme defensive plays along the way. Aside from Regg (19 points, 11 assists), no one scored more than 12 points for the Bucks.

The scoring barrage continued from the Raptors in the second game, as they stormed out quickly to a 14-2 lead, finishing the quarter with a 19-8 advantage. The second quarter continued in much the same way, as the Raptors found easy basket after easy basket. The Bucks played scrappy defense and made a few successful stops, but trailed by nine at the half despite outscoring Toronto in the second frame. As is the case with many teams that face the Raptors, the wheels came off for the Bucks in the third quarter. While they take a while to get going, the Raptors are a notoriously strong second-half team and can pick a team apart in a matter of minutes. From effortless alley-oops to long-range jumpers, Uprising put on a show in this frame and essentially put the game out of reach. The 31-point quarter resulted in a 66-41 lead for the Raptors. Although they trailed by as much as 30 points in the fourth quarter the Bucks managed to cut the lead in half at one point, they ultimately folded to the Raptors, 90-65. Kenny Got Work had another great game with 28 points and 10 assists, and ReeceMode kicked in 22 points as well. Sick One had one of his best set of games of the season, as he cruised to a 10-point, 13-rebound double-double.

With their ticket punched, Raptors Uprising will face the Gen.G Tigers in the semifinals on Friday.