Martin and Barrett 27 each as Raptors beat the 1-8 Bucks 121-107
This image is an AI-generated illustration rather than matchday photography
Martin had not scored more than nine points in any of his previous 30 NBA games. On Friday, without three of Toronto's best players, he shot 9 of 11 from the floor and 6 of 7 from three-point range and finished plus-22 in a 121-107 win.
The third quarter belongs to Martin
Twenty-seven points was more than Martin had scored in his entire season until Friday: 23 points across seven games before this one.
In the wider picture, Martin is a 2025 second-round pick out of Florida who had entered Friday having made 6 of 27 three-point attempts across his career to that point.
Toronto's first lead of the game arrived on Martin's three-pointer that made it 71-69 with 5:41 left in the third quarter.
Jamal Shead set a career high with 16 assists alongside 10 points and a plus-23, and Collin Murray-Boyles added 19 points, seven rebounds and four steals.
Poeltl did the unglamorous version of the same job: 19 points on nine of 14, 11 rebounds with six offensive, three steals and a block.
Herro's 23 and 10, Turner's silent night
Tyler Herro finished with 23 points and 10 assists but was 1 of 5 from three until the attempt that put Milwaukee back in front 22 seconds after Martin's three had given Toronto their first lead.
That three started a 10-2 run and a 79-73 advantage, and Toronto answered with the next nine points to take the lead for good on Allen Graves' three-point play with 2:17 left in the third.
In the wider picture, the Bucks are 1-8, the slowest start in the franchise's history since the 1993-94 team that lost 10 of its first 11 games and went on to finish 20-62.
Rookie Brayden Burries set career highs with 21 points and 11 rebounds, five of them offensive, and Myles Turner scored no points in 24 minutes on 0 of 7 from the floor.
Toronto's defence produced 12 steals and 27 points off Milwaukee's 21 turnovers, and the Raptors converted 24 of 31 free throws in the game.
What the two records now say
Toronto moved to 1-1 in NBA Cup group play and 5-4 overall; Milwaukee fell to 0-1 in the Cup and 1-8 in the league, part of an East Group A that also holds Detroit, Orlando and Brooklyn.
Beyond that, the Raptors were playing without a seven-time all-NBA selection in Leonard, a two-time All-Star in Barnes and their starting guard Quickley, with Leonard missing a seventh consecutive game.
RJ Barrett carried the other half of the scoring with 27 points on nine of 21 and nine of 11 from the line, plus seven rebounds and five assists in 37 minutes.
In the wider picture, Toronto's rotation absorbed the absences by giving 31 minutes to Martin and 16 to Graves, and the team still shot 47 per cent from the floor.
Monday brings Memphis to Toronto; Sunday brings Boston to Milwaukee, where the record book has started to look relevant.
Editor's take: Twenty-seven points off 9 of 11 shooting from a player who had made six three-pointers all season is a scouting report problem in Milwaukee before it is a good night in Toronto.
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