Portland @ Milwaukee preview

Last Meeting ( Mar 21, 2017 ) Milwaukee 93, Portland 90

Damian Lillard has his backcourt mate back in the lineup and the high-scoring duo of Lillard and CJ McCollum look to elevate Portland to a 3-0 start when the Trail Blazers visit the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday. McCollum scored 28 points on 12-of-18 shooting in his season debut Friday as Portland notched a solid 114-96 road victory over the Indiana Pacers.

McCollum missed the Trail Blazers' 48-point drubbing of the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday while serving a one-game suspension for leaving the bench during an altercation in the preseason finale but was on his game against the Pacers. "It certainly helped to have CJ back," Lillard said. "But the main thing is that we continued to defend." Portland allowed an average of 86 points in its first two games while Milwaukee is prepared for another tough contest after opening with the two teams that played in last season's Eastern Conference finals. "It's the NBA," Bucks coach Jason Kidd told reporters. "There are no easy wins in this league. You can get beat on any given night. We started with Boston and Cleveland, now we have to face Portland. We've got a tough task, no matter who we're playing."

TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN Northwest (Portland), FSN Wisconsin (Milwaukee)

ABOUT THE TRAIL BLAZERS (2-0): Lillard (27) and McCollum (23) combined to average 50 points per game last season and both players have fared well against Milwaukee. Lillard averaged 30.5 points, 6.5 assists, six rebounds and two steals in two games against the Bucks last season, while McCollum averaged 22 points and 3.5 assists and has scored 20 or more in three straight games against Milwaukee. Portland will look to get center Jusuf Nurkic (6-of-20 shooting in two games) going after he had six turnovers and only two rebounds Friday after having 11 points and 11 rebounds in the season opener.

ABOUT THE BUCKS (1-1): All-Star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo is averaging 35.5 points on 28-of-44 shooting after contributing 34 points, eight rebounds and eight assists in Friday's 116-97 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. "Giannis did a really good job trying to find the open guy and being aggressive," Kidd said afterward. "He scored a lot of points but he needs his teammates to make some open shots and take the pressure off him." Reigning Rookie of the Year Malcolm Brogdon was the lone other player in double digits (16 points) against the Cavaliers and is averaging 17.5 points.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. The Bucks won both of last season's meetings and have prevailed in four of the past five matchups.

2. Portland PF Al-Faroqu Aminu is averaging 14 rebounds through two games after collecting 16 against Indiana.

3. Milwaukee SG Khris Middleton (11.5 average) is 9-of-27 from the field, including 1-of-10 from 3-point range.

PREDICTION: Bucks 109, Trail Blazers 104