In what was virtually a must-win scenario for Toronto on their home floor on Sunday, the Raptors were eventually able to gut out a grueling 118-112 win in double-overtime to make it a 2-1 series and give themselves a chance to even things up in Game 4 on Tuesday.
It was Kawhi Leonard who led the way for the Raptors with 36 points, to go along with eight rebounds and five assists, including two huge breakaway dunks in the second overtime and a clutch layup with under 40 seconds remaining to put the game out of reach for good.
Kawhi smashes in transition pic.twitter.com/1o84SmMHNB
— Leigh Ellis (@LeighEllis) May 20, 2019
Siakam with the clutch block & Kawhi with the bucket. ??? pic.twitter.com/U6z1xShBdU
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) May 20, 2019
This Eastern Conference Finals series has often hinged on contributions from role players, and that trend continued in Game 3 as Pascal Siakam and Normal Powell both stepped up in a big way. Siakam finished with 23 points and 11 rebounds, while Powell added 19 points.
The Raptors were once again determined not to let Giannis beat them, and they passed that test with flying colors as he was held scoreless from the midway point of the second quarter to the nine-minute mark of the fourth and finished with just 12 points on 5-of-14 shooting, but added 23 rebounds and seven assists before fouling out in the second overtime.
Giannis fouls out in the second OT. pic.twitter.com/A7CfvRvCty
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) May 20, 2019
Still, the Bucks had five other players in double figures, led by George Hill with 24 points and Malcolm Brogdon with 20 off the bench. It was Kris Middleton who sent the game into the first overtime with a tough layup after the initial block to tie the game at 96-96 with two seconds remaining in regulation.
MIDDLETON TIES IT! pic.twitter.com/VR8y9k2sfN
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) May 20, 2019
Marc Gasol, who was just 3-of-20 through Games 1 and 2 from downtown, started to heat up early in Toronto and equaled his point total for the series with eight points in the first quarter alone on a pair of three-pointers and hit a huge three in double-overtime to finish with 16 points, 12 rebounds, and seven assists.
Toronto clamped down on Giannis with a trio of defenders from the very start — Siakam, Kawhi, and Powell — forcing the Bucks into six turnovers and coming up with five steals to set the tone in the first quarter. They continued to clog the lane after that, though Giannis eventually exerted his dominance and Euro-stepped his way into the lane for a couple of difficult layups on consecutive possessions, including this physics-defying finish on just a single dribble from inside the half-court line.
Giannis… just how?!
(?: @Bucks) pic.twitter.com/sNapM55JPL
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) May 19, 2019
Kyle Lowry (11 points, five assists) fouled out with more than six minutes remaining in the fourth, and the Raptors went scoreless for a five-and-half minute stretch in the fourth quarter as the Bucks fought all the way back to force overtime. But they were ultimately unable to get it done as Toronto outlasted them in the extra periods and now has a chance to even up the series when Game 4 tips off back in Toronto on Tuesday night.
