DeRozan: Raptors must treat Game 6 vs. Bucks as if it's a Game 7
With a blowout 118-93 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks at the Air Canada Centre Monday night in Game 5, the Toronto Raptors now hold a 3-2 lead over the Bucks and have an opportunity to end their best-of-seven series Thursday at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.
All-Star DeMar DeRozan has been down this road multiple times before. It was just last year when Toronto was up 3-2 on both the Indiana Pacers and Miami Heat in the playoffs, but needed to go the distance to close them out.
Frankly, it's a road he'd prefer not to have to travel again.
"We've gotta treat it like a Game 7. Period," DeRozan said of Thursday's Game 6. "Nothing else to it. Treat it like a Game 7. We can't be happy with these last two games. We've just gotta treat this next game like it's Game 7."
LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers await in the second round following their sweep of the Indiana Pacers. That series against the winner of Raptors-Bucks gets underway on May 1, so if the Raptors handle their business in Game 6, they'll have three full days of rest before battling the reigning champions.
DeRozan played 33 minutes Monday, scoring 18 points on 7-of-14 shooting, grabbing three boards, and dishing out six assists.