Tip-off: Tuesday, 10:05 p.m. ET
Line: Portland -5.0, Total: 216.0

Both the Bucks and Blazers will be hoping to help their playoff chances with a win on Tuesday night.

Milwaukee lost 117-92 as a 10.5-point underdog in Golden State on Saturday, but the Bucks are still playing extremely well lately. Milwaukee has won eight of its past 10 games, and the team covered in seven of those contests. Where the Bucks have been playing well is on the offensive end, where they have shot 45.0% or better from the floor in four of their past six games. They’ll need to keep that up on Tuesday, as they can’t afford to struggle in this one. The Blazers are one of the best teams in the league offensively, and Milwaukee must hang with them on that end. The Blazers are going to be a hungry team on Tuesday, though. Portland is currently fighting for the eighth seed in the Western Conference, and the team can’t afford to lose many more games moving forward. The Blazer are, however, hot coming into this one. They have won-and-covered in three straight games and four of their past five, and all of those games were on the road. One trend that bodes well for the Blazers is that they are 3-0 ATS after a road blowout loss of 20 points or more this season. They could, however, be without SF Giannis Antetokounmpo (Ankle), who is listed as questionable for this one.

The Bucks are currently battling for a spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs, and they will really need SF Giannis Antetokounmpo (22.9 PPG, 8.4 RPG, 5.4 APG, 1.9 BPG, 1.7 SPG) to get healthy fast. If he can play in this one then that would be big for Milwaukee, as nobody on the Blazers has the combination of size and speed to really stop Antetokounmpo. He’d almost definitely find a way to score 30 in this one, and he’d also be a threat to post a triple-double. Whether or not he can go, SG Khris Middleton (14.9 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 3.6 APG, 1.2 SPG) is going to need to step it up. Middleton has looked good since returning from injury, and it’s possible that he’ll be a go-to guy for the Bucks in this one. McCollum’ll likely guard him, so Middleton would be wise to spend some time in the post in this one. He has the height and length to shoot right over the top of McCollum and needs to realize that early. Two other guys that will be relied on to raise their games are C Greg Monroe (11.8 PPG, 6.6 RPG, 1.2 SPG) and SG Malcolm Brogdon (10.0 PPG, 4.1 APG, 1.2 SPG). Monroe can give the team some instant offense, and Brogdon is a floor general that can defend and knock down the three (41% 3PT).

The Blazers are hot right now and PG Damian Lillard (26.8 PPG, 5.8 APG, 4.8 RPG) is playing some of the best basketball of his career recently. Over the past 10 games, Lillard is averaging 31.1 PPG and 5.3 APG on 48.6% shooting from the floor. He erupted against Miami on Sunday, going for 49 points and five assists on 14-for-21 shooting from the floor and 9-for-12 shooting from three. He was also a perfect 12-for-12 from the line, and he hasn’t missed a free throw in a game since Mar. 11. That might not seem like anything too crazy, but he has taken 45 free throws in the past five games. Look for him to continue to play well on Tuesday, as there is nobody on Milwaukee that can handle his quickness. SG C.J. McCollum (23.2 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 3.6 APG, 1.0 SPG) should also play well on the offensive end in this one. He is crafty and quick enough to get by Khris Middleton, but he will need to really dig in on the defensive end. If he can’t stop Middleton then Portland will likely lose this one. C Jusuf Nurkic (9.5 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 1.1 BPG) is another player to keep an eye on. The big man has revived his career in Portland, averaging 14.4 PPG, 9.6 RPG, 3.5 APG, 2.1 BPG, and 1.4 SPG in 29.9 MPG over the past 14 games. He should have no trouble dominating the paint on Tuesday.