Raptors Advance with 92-89 Game 6 Win vs. Bucks, Nearly Blow 25-Point Lead

The Toronto Raptors advanced to the second round of the NBA playoffs Thursday, but nothing was easy about it.

Toronto beat the Milwaukee Bucks in BMO Harris Bradley Center 92-89 to win the series in six games but only after it blew a commanding 25-point lead. The Bucks seized the advantage in the final four minutes with a Jason Terry three, but Cory Joseph drilled a three and DeMar DeRozan slammed in a dunk during a monumental 9-0 run in response to give the Raptors the victory.

DeRozan led the way throughout the contest:

Player	Points	Rebounds	Assists	Steals	Field Goals
DeMar DeRozan	32	4	3	5	12-of-24
Kyle Lowry	13	4	4	2	5-of-9
Serge Ibaka	7	11	0	0 (2 blocks)	2-of-7

Giannis Antetokounmpo spearheaded Milwaukee's effort with 34 points and nine rebounds, but the home team's late spurt ultimately wasn't enough.

DeMar DeRozan Saves the Raptors

DeRozan was nearly invisible in Game 3 with eight points in a 27-point loss. He saved Toronto with 33 points in Game 4 and did the same Thursday as the only Raptor to score more than 13. 

The Bucks had nobody who could stay in front of him on a consistent basis as the Raptors extended their lead to more than 20 points in the second half. Matt Velazquez of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel acknowledged the successful drives:

The early points were crucial, but so was his late dunk to take the air out of the arena. It was the type of play franchise playmakers make with a playoff contest on the line, and he also drilled clutch free throws in the final moments.

Matt Moore of CBS Sports reacted to the dunk:

"

DEROZAN OK YOU’RE THE MAN I WILL BUILD CHURCHES IN YOUR NAME NOW

— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) April 28, 2017"

DeRozan will have to be equally if not more brilliant against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round, but he was Toronto's savior Thursday.

Giannis Antetokounmpo Ends Season in Impressive Fashion

The Greek Freak clearly wasn't ready to see his season end when he scored Milwaukee's first eight points and exerted himself so much he was gasping for air by the final stretch. He single-handledly kept the Bucks within shouting distance early, which made their second-half run possible.

FanSided's Behind the Buck Pass reacted to his effort:

However, Haralabos Voulgaris pointed to a missed opportunity for Milwaukee as the Raptors built their lead to double digits:

"

If the Bucks go down 4-2 without Kidd trying any mins with Giannis at the 5 that would be a pretty big fail.

— Haralabos Voulgaris (@haralabob) April 27, 2017"

Antetokounmpo finally received some help during the run, as Khris Middleton ended up with 19 points, Matthew Dellavedova scored 12 and Terry hit a couple of threes, but he was still the only Buck to reach the 20-point mark.

Fortunately for Milwaukee, its star is just 22 years old with a bright future, especially when Jabari Parker returns from injury and joins forces with him.

Raptors Nearly Collapse

The Bucks deserve plenty of credit for never folding and feeding on the crowd's energy, but it would be disingenuous to overlook Toronto's near collapse.

After dominating the majority of the game, the offense froze, and its normally stout defense couldn't come through with a stop. Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today pointed to some of the ugly numbers for Toronto.

The Raptors were bailed out by Milwaukee's poor free-throw shooting (18-of-28, 64.3 percent) multiple times, otherwise there may have been a Game 7.

Chris Walder of The Score responded to the massive Milwaukee run:

The internet had plenty of fun with what looked like a total collapse:

"

toronto... pic.twitter.com/IxXR21KUij

— Rohan Nadkarni (@RohanNadkarni) April 28, 2017"

Toronto responded just in time with the 9-0 run to turn an 82-80 deficit into an 89-82 lead, but it won't be able to afford similar efforts against the defending champions in the second round.