OK, so the Bucks were one of three or four feel-good stories in the NBA this season. Right about now, the reaction there is, so what? The shelf life on that account expired, say, last weekend.

And when Detroit gets through with them in the playoffs, who outside of a 100-yard radius of the Bradley Center will remember if the Bucks won 20 games or finished .500 in the regular season?

The idea was to move on from the success of the first 79 games and make the last three count toward genuine playoff progress.

That won't happen now, not after a potentially ruinous three-game losing streak that culminated Wednesday night with an 89-87 dagger from Toronto, which had less to gain than the cast of "Caddyshack" at the Oscars.

The Bucks had three chances to get this right and failed each time. And now they've gone from a home-court series against Miami, the one available team they matched up well against and probably would've beaten, to giving the Pistons a Palace-sized advantage?

The Bucks will be lucky if they don't get swept.