Tag Archive | "raptors"

Bargnani in, Calderon out as Raptors host Bucks

Posted on 11 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

A visit to Toronto might provide the Milwaukee Bucks with an excellent opportunity to end their current road skid and win back-to-back games for the first time in a month.

The Bucks look to snap a four-game road losing streak with a sixth straight win over the Raptors on Sunday night.

Ending their struggles against Milwaukee could get even tougher for the Raptors (13-27), who will be without point guard Jose Calderon after he sprained his ankle during Saturday’s 105-86 loss at Detroit.

“We’ll have to come up with something,” coach Dwane Casey said about replacing Calderon, whose X-rays were negative. “We have Jerryd [Bayless] and [Gary] Forbes at the point, and [Leandro Barbosa] can slide over. We’ll figure it out.”

On a positive note, Andrea Bargnani (22.4 points per game) returned to the Raptors’ lineup Saturday after missing 20 games with a calf injury. Though Bargnani had just eight points in 19 minutes at Detroit, he’s averaged 22.7 in his last three games versus Milwaukee.

Averaging 21.5 points in his last four games overall, Toronto’s DeMar DeRozan has combined for 45 on 17-of-33 shooting in the last two home games against the Bucks.

In order to move into playoff position in the Eastern Conference, Milwaukee (16-24) must find a way to string together some wins. The Bucks could start by winning consecutive games for the first time since Feb. 8-10 after they held on for a 119-114 victory over New York on Friday night.

Ersan Ilyasova scored 26 points while Brandon Jennings and Mike Dunleavy each added 25. Milwaukee almost blew a 15-point fourth-quarter lead but came out ahead to move within two games of the Knicks, owners of the eighth and final playoff spot in the East.

“That’s why this was a big game,” said Jennings, who also had 10 assists.

Perhaps equally important, the Bucks showed they can hold a lead after failing to keep several slim advantages before losing 106-104 to Chicago on Derrick Rose’s last-second shot Wednesday.

“It hurt us losing the one to Chicago,” said big man Drew Gooden, who has averaged 19.3 points and 8.4 rebounds in the last seven games. “We still did a terrible job trying to close the game out (Friday). We can’t allow that.”

Milwaukee usually has had little trouble holding leads during a five-game winning streak over the Raptors, which dates to a 101-96 loss at Toronto on Jan. 22, 2010.

Though the Bucks are 6-15 away from home this season, they have made 50.2 percent of their shots and averaged 108.3 points while winning their last three trips north of the border. Former Raptors swingman Carlos Delfino had 25 points with nine rebounds and Gooden scored 20 with 14 boards in Milwaukee’s 105-99 win at Toronto on Feb. 8.

Gooden is averaging 20.3 points and 12.0 rebounds in his last three games against the Raptors.

Back spasms kept Ilyasova out at Toronto last month, but the Raptors need to be ready for his presence Sunday. Helping to fill in for injured center Andrew Bogut, the 6-foot-10 Ilyasova has totaled 58 points on 23-of-31 shooting in the last two contests overall.

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Stuckey, Knight lead Pistons past Raptors, 105-86

Posted on 11 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP)—Detroit Pistons coach Lawrence Frank only had one
regret about Saturday’s first quarter against the Toronto Raptors.

“It ended,” Frank said with a chuckle after Detroit’s 105-86 victory.

The Pistons outscored Toronto 37-14 in the first period and never looked
back. Brandon Knight scored 15 points in the period, outscoring the Raptors
himself.

“We always want to attack the rim, and we did a great job of that early,”
the rookie said. “We wanted to come out with as much energy as possible from
the start, and we know we left it all on the floor tonight.”

Detroit outshot Toronto 71 percent to 25 percent, taking advantage of
Toronto’s less-than-imposing frontline of Aaron Gray and Andrea Bargnani.

“Most of that was defense—we were getting easy baskets off stops—and we
always try to be aggressive,” said Rodney Stuckey, who led Detroit with 20
points and eight assists. “But we also knew they don’t have shot-blockers in
the middle, so we really tried to get the ball to the rim.”

The Pistons, who are now 11-6 since a 4-20 start, had six players in double
figures and shot over 50 percent for the second straight night.

“Obviously, we were very, very good all night,” Frank said. “We got into
an offensive rhythm and we got a lot of easy baskets.”

After their terrible start, where they looked like they would battle
Charlotte for the league’s worst record, the Pistons have now gotten themselves
within 3 1/2 games of the eighth Eastern Conference playoff

spot.

The problem is that they now face their biggest test of the season, playing
10 games in 10 cities in an 18-day stretch. Their only home game of the run
comes on March 23 against Miami.

“This is the first trip I’ve ever taken like this, so it is going to be a
learning experience,” Knight said. “I just know we’re playing better all of
the time, and we have to keep it going.”

Toronto, which beat Detroit by 20 in their first meeting this season, was
led by DeMar DeRozan’s 15 points, but only two others reached double figures.
Bargnani returned after missing 26 of 28 games with a

strained calf, and scored eight points in 19 minutes.

“I’m shocked that we came out with that kind of effort,” said Toronto
coach Dwane Casey. “There was no defensive focus, there was no screening—
there was no fundamental that we executed tonight, and I’m shocked.”

Things got even worse for the Raptors in the second quarter, when Jose
Calderon stepped on Knight’s ankle at top speed and badly sprained his right
ankle. He did not return to the game.

“We’ll have to come up with something,” Casey said about replacing
Calderon in the lineup. “We have Jerryd (Bayless) and (Gary) Forbes at the
point, and LB (Leandro Barbosa) can slide over. We’ll figure it

out. It isn’t an excuse.”

Detroit still led 61-37 after a fairly even second period, but both teams
remembered the game on Dec. 11, 2010, when the Raptors trailed by 25 in the
third quarter before rallying to beat the Pistons 120-116 at

the Palace.

This time, though, the Raptors couldn’t get the defensive stops they would
have needed to pull off a repeat performance. Detroit scored 28 more points in
the third, and led 89-58 going into the final period.

“They just outworked us,” James Johnson said. “You would think we would
be focused, but we just looked tired. We didn’t accomplish anything we wanted to
do. All the things we went over on film? We didn’t do them.”

NOTES: X-rays on Calderon’s ankle were negative, but he is not expected to
play in Sunday’s game against Milwaukee. … Tayshaun Prince became the sixth
player to play 700 games for the Pistons. … Charlie Villauneva (ankle) played
the last three minutes—his first action since Jan. 4.

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Stuckey scores 20 points, Knight adds 19 to lead…

Posted on 11 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – Detroit Pistons coach Lawrence Frank only had one regret about Saturday’s first quarter against the Toronto Raptors.

“It ended,” Frank said with a chuckle after Detroit’s 105-86 victory.

The Pistons outscored Toronto 37-14 in the first period and never looked back. Brandon Knight scored 15 points in the period, outscoring the Raptors himself.

“We always want to attack the rim, and we did a great job of that early,” the rookie said. “We wanted to come out with as much energy as possible from the start, and we know we left it all on the floor tonight.”

Detroit outshot Toronto 71 per cent to 25 per cent, taking advantage of Toronto’s less-than-imposing frontline of Aaron Gray and Andrea Bargnani.

“Most of that was defence — we were getting easy baskets off stops — and we always try to be aggressive,” said Rodney Stuckey, who led Detroit with 20 points and eight assists. “But we also knew they don’t have shot-blockers in the middle, so we really tried to get the ball to the rim.”

The Pistons, who are now 11-6 since a 4-20 start, had six players in double figures and shot over 50 per cent for the second straight night.

“Obviously, we were very, very good all night,” Frank said. “We got into an offensive rhythm and we got a lot of easy baskets.”

After their terrible start, where they looked like they would battle Charlotte for the league’s worst record, the Pistons have now gotten themselves within 3 1/2 games of the eighth Eastern Conference playoff

spot.

The problem is that they now face their biggest test of the season, playing 10 games in 10 cities in an 18-day stretch. Their only home game of the run comes on March 23 against Miami.

“This is the first trip I’ve ever taken like this, so it is going to be a learning experience,” Knight said. “I just know we’re playing better all of the time, and we have to keep it going.”

Toronto, which beat Detroit by 20 in their first meeting this season, was led by DeMar DeRozan’s 15 points, but only two others reached double figures. Bargnani returned after missing 26 of 28 games with a

strained calf, and scored eight points in 19 minutes.

“I’m shocked that we came out with that kind of effort,” said Toronto coach Dwane Casey. “There was no defensive focus, there was no screening — there was no fundamental that we executed tonight, and I’m shocked.”

Things got even worse for the Raptors in the second quarter, when Jose Calderon stepped on Knight’s ankle at top speed and badly sprained his right ankle. He did not return to the game.

“We’ll have to come up with something,” Casey said about replacing Calderon in the lineup. “We have Jerryd (Bayless) and (Gary) Forbes at the point, and LB (Leandro Barbosa) can slide over. We’ll figure it

out. It isn’t an excuse.”

Detroit still led 61-37 after a fairly even second period, but both teams remembered the game on Dec. 11, 2010, when the Raptors trailed by 25 in the third quarter before rallying to beat the Pistons 120-116 at

the Palace.

This time, though, the Raptors couldn’t get the defensive stops they would have needed to pull off a repeat performance. Detroit scored 28 more points in the third, and led 89-58 going into the final period.

“They just outworked us,” James Johnson said. “You would think we would be focused, but we just looked tired. We didn’t accomplish anything we wanted to do. All the things we went over on film? We didn’t do them.”

NOTES: X-rays on Calderon’s ankle were negative, but he is not expected to play in Sunday’s game against Milwaukee. … Tayshaun Prince became the sixth player to play 700 games for the Pistons. … Charlie Villauneva (ankle) played the last three minutes — his first action since Jan. 4.

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Raptors pummeled by surging Pistons

Posted on 11 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Detroit Pistons coach Lawrence Frank only had one regret about Saturday’s first quarter against the Toronto Raptors.

“It ended,” Frank said with a chuckle after Detroit’s 105-86 victory.

The Pistons outscored Toronto 37-14 in the first period and never looked back. Brandon Knight scored 15 points in the period, outscoring the Raptors himself.

“We always want to attack the rim, and we did a great job of that early,” the rookie said. “We wanted to come out with as much energy as possible from the start, and we know we left it all on the floor tonight.”

Detroit outshot Toronto 71 per cent to 25 per cent, taking advantage of Toronto’s less-than-imposing frontline of Aaron Gray and Andrea Bargnani.

“Most of that was defence — we were getting easy baskets off stops — and we always try to be aggressive,” said Rodney Stuckey, who led Detroit with 20 points and eight assists. “But we also knew they don’t have shot-blockers in the middle, so we really tried to get the ball to the rim.”

The Pistons, who are now 11-6 since a 4-20 start, had six players in double figures and shot over 50 per cent for the second straight night.

“Obviously, we were very, very good all night,” Frank said. “We got into an offensive rhythm and we got a lot of easy baskets.”

After their terrible start, where they looked like they would battle Charlotte for the league’s worst record, the Pistons have now gotten themselves within 3 1/2 games of the eighth Eastern Conference playoff

spot.

The problem is that they now face their biggest test of the season, playing 10 games in 10 cities in an 18-day stretch. Their only home game of the run comes on March 23 against Miami.

“This is the first trip I’ve ever taken like this, so it is going to be a learning experience,” Knight said. “I just know we’re playing better all of the time, and we have to keep it going.”

Toronto, which beat Detroit by 20 in their first meeting this season, was led by DeMar DeRozan’s 15 points, but only two others reached double figures. Bargnani returned after missing 26 of 28 games with a

strained calf, and scored eight points in 19 minutes.

“I’m shocked that we came out with that kind of effort,” said Toronto coach Dwane Casey. “There was no defensive focus, there was no screening — there was no fundamental that we executed tonight, and I’m shocked.”

Things got even worse for the Raptors in the second quarter, when Jose Calderon stepped on Knight’s ankle at top speed and badly sprained his right ankle. He did not return to the game.

“We’ll have to come up with something,” Casey said about replacing Calderon in the lineup. “We have Jerryd (Bayless) and (Gary) Forbes at the point, and LB (Leandro Barbosa) can slide over. We’ll figure it

out. It isn’t an excuse.”

Detroit still led 61-37 after a fairly even second period, but both teams remembered the game on Dec. 11, 2010, when the Raptors trailed by 25 in the third quarter before rallying to beat the Pistons 120-116 at

the Palace.

This time, though, the Raptors couldn’t get the defensive stops they would have needed to pull off a repeat performance. Detroit scored 28 more points in the third, and led 89-58 going into the final period.

“They just outworked us,” James Johnson said. “You would think we would be focused, but we just looked tired. We didn’t accomplish anything we wanted to do. All the things we went over on film? We didn’t do them.”

NOTES: X-rays on Calderon’s ankle were negative, but he is not expected to play in Sunday’s game against Milwaukee. … Tayshaun Prince became the sixth player to play 700 games for the Pistons. … Charlie Villauneva (ankle) played the last three minutes — his first action since Jan. 4.

Gotta run!.

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Raptors lose Calderon, fall to Pistons

Posted on 11 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Detroit Pistons coach Lawrence Frank only had one regret about Saturday’s first quarter against the Toronto Raptors.

“It ended,” Frank said with a chuckle after Detroit’s 105-86 victory.

The Pistons outscored Toronto 37-14 in the first period and never looked back. Brandon Knight scored 15 points in the period, outscoring the Raptors himself.

“We always want to attack the rim, and we did a great job of that early,” the rookie said. “We wanted to come out with as much energy as possible from the start, and we know we left it all on the floor tonight.”

Detroit outshot Toronto 71 per cent to 25 per cent, taking advantage of Toronto’s less-than-imposing frontline of Aaron Gray and Andrea Bargnani.

“Most of that was defence — we were getting easy baskets off stops — and we always try to be aggressive,” said Rodney Stuckey, who led Detroit with 20 points and eight assists. “But we also knew they don’t have shot-blockers in the middle, so we really tried to get the ball to the rim.”

The Pistons, who are now 11-6 since a 4-20 start, had six players in double figures and shot over 50 per cent for the second straight night.

“Obviously, we were very, very good all night,” Frank said. “We got into an offensive rhythm and we got a lot of easy baskets.”

After their terrible start, where they looked like they would battle Charlotte for the league’s worst record, the Pistons have now gotten themselves within 3 ½ games of the eighth Eastern Conference playoff spot.

The problem is that they now face their biggest test of the season, playing 10 games in 10 cities in an 18-day stretch. Their only home game of the run comes on March 23 against Miami.

“This is the first trip I’ve ever taken like this, so it is going to be a learning experience,” Knight said. “I just know we’re playing better all of the time, and we have to keep it going.”

Toronto, which beat Detroit by 20 in their first meeting this season, was led by DeMar DeRozan’s 15 points, but only two others reached double figures. Bargnani returned after missing 26 of 28 games with a strained calf, and scored eight points in 19 minutes.

“I’m shocked that we came out with that kind of effort,” said Toronto coach Dwane Casey. “There was no defensive focus, there was no screening — there was no fundamental that we executed tonight, and I’m shocked.”

Things got even worse for the Raptors in the second quarter, when Jose Calderon stepped on Knight’s ankle at top speed and badly sprained his right ankle. He did not return to the game.

“We’ll have to come up with something,” Casey said about replacing Calderon in the lineup. “We have Jerryd [Bayless] and [Gary] Forbes at the point, and LB [Leandro Barbosa] can slide over. We’ll figure it out. It isn’t an excuse.”

Detroit still led 61-37 after a fairly even second period, but both teams remembered the game on Dec. 11, 2010, when the Raptors trailed by 25 in the third quarter before rallying to beat the Pistons 120-116 at the Palace.

This time, though, the Raptors couldn’t get the defensive stops they would have needed to pull off a repeat performance. Detroit scored 28 more points in the third, and led 89-58 going into the final period.

“They just outworked us,” James Johnson said. “You would think we would be focused, but we just looked tired. We didn’t accomplish anything we wanted to do. All the things we went over on film? We didn’t do them.”

Running low on time today, i’ll be back tomorrow hopefully with some more news.

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Raptors plan to stay quiet at deadline

Posted on 10 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

TORONTO — The NBA trade deadline can be a tame occasion.

The lockout did not do much to change how complicated navigating the league’s salary cap can be. This is not the NHL, where there is a simple salary ceiling that teams cannot exceed.

All of the mechanisms, all of the exceptions mean pulling off a trade in the NBA can often require an MBA, at least.

For the Toronto Raptors, the world is a lot simpler. With a payroll of less than US$52-million, they have about US$6-million that they could conceivably add under the cap before Thursday’s trade deadline. The Raptors are not likely to explore that route, though. The Raptors have more than an eye directed at next year.

“Bryan [Colangelo] is a very innovative guy, and Ed Stefanski,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey said of the Raptors’ president and general manager, and executive vice-president, respectively. “They’re always looking to improve our team. I know we’re not going to do anything to [alter] our cap flexibility next year or to destroy our core, because I like our core. Next year is a different story. We’re going to evaluate the guys that we’ve got now and see where they are.”

That cap flexibility looms the largest. When you factor in two draft picks — the incoming Jonas Valanciunas and whomever the Raptors select this year — Toronto could have approximately US$10- to US$15-million to spend this off-season. Any number of factors, including the fate of Jerryd Bayless and a decision to use the amnesty clause, could change that number.

Colangelo, who said he is being “extra diligent” in sticking with this team’s plan to “change the culture, develop the core [and] preserve maximum cap flexibility,” is an aggressive general manager. Before the season, he said that the patient approach these Raptors require sometimes gets to him. At heart, he is a dealmaker.

However, unless something unforeseen comes along, it is tough to envision Colangelo declaring this the time to change the face of the Raptors.

“If we were in a position to obtain a key piece for the future, it would certainly cause deliberation,” Colangelo said via email. “But remaining cap neutral or creating more space in our dealings is one of our key objectives.”

“There is nothing going on with trades today,” Casey added. “There are a lot of calls back and forth right now, but there is no real thing going on with trades. I didn’t even bring it up to our players because there’s nothing going on. There’s nothing to really talk about.”

By far, Leandro Barbosa is the most logical Raptor to move. He is making US$7.6-million this season, which means most contending teams would have to ship back a nearly equal value in salary. But if the Raptors can gain any asset for the free-agent-to-be, it would make sense for them.

Point guard Jose Calderon’s contract runs through next season, when he will be owed US$10.6-million. Calderon, averaging 10.7 points and 8.7 assists per game, could be an appealing player for a contender with a need at that position. But his contract is a hard one to move, and the Raptors might have use for him to run the team for another year next season.

When Valanciunas arrives in the NBA next year, the Raptors will have a glut of big men. That will likely end the Raptors career of either Amir Johnson or Ed Davis. However, both players will probably be easier to move when they are paired with a draft pick. Also, it will be informative to see how they mesh with the returning Andrea Bargnani, who has missed 26 games this year with a calf injury.

“That’s a big part of it,” Casey said. “Not to necessarily learn how to win games, which is important, but how we fit together as a unit, what needs we have, what guys can do with him in the lineup, what are our weakness with him. All of those things matter.”

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That’s all the news for today.

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Toronto Raptors coach Dwane Casey finds 'a lot…

Posted on 10 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

TORONTO . Sunday’s 76-75 pre-season loss to Boston, when the Raptors held the Celtics to 39% shooting, proved Toronto’s players are receptive to Casey’s designs after one week of training camp. But the coach was not willing to grade Toronto’s performance above anything more than what it was: a first step.

“A lot of positives. We knew the offence was going to be trailing and the defence was going to be way ahead. Execution-wise we did not have guys in the right place offensively, we expected that,” Casey said after Monday’s practice, which he said focused more on offence. The Raptors shot just 38% from the floor against Boston and turned the ball over 21 times, which led to 26 Celtics points. Casey chuckled when asked if he expected the Raptors to fumble so often.

“It wasn’t anything we didn’t expect,” he said before enumerating other shortcomings in Toronto’s attack, particularly a blown play in the final seconds when swingman DeMar DeRozan and power forward Andrea Bargnani missed game-winning shots. “At the end of the game we’ve got to be able to execute. Clock management, right before the first half was over, we had some bonehead plays. We talked about those and we’re going to correct those.

“We’ve got to understand time and score. When we have an opportunity to have a twofor-one situation we’ve got to execute those.”

Casey said he may even borrow some offensive plays from last season’s playbook to bring some confidence and familiarity so Toronto is not “fighting the shot clock” and just throwing the ball at the net. But nothing will take away from the defensive focus. The Raptors’ ability to hold the Celtics under 80 points has set a bar Toronto has to maintain Wednesday again in Boston in the final pre-season game. And Casey will continually measure Toronto’s defence by two statistics.

“Field goal percentage is one – and points in the paint is another determining factor,” Casey said. Boston was 14 of 34 for 28 points on the key Sunday. “When a team is scoring in your paint, that means they are breaking down your perimeter defence – Defensively, 45% or under is cool. I think that is the most important thing, keeping that fieldgoal percentage under 45. Or anything below 40% is really good.”

Ed Davis, who had 10 points and 10 rebounds, relished the chance to get off the practice court and challenge someone else beside a teammate.

“When you start playing against your own teammates you start to cheat because you know their next move,” the second-year power forward from North Carolina said. “So playing against guys you don’t know, it keeps you honest, it keeps you on your toes.”

James Johnson, who blocked four Boston shots, says the biggest challenge for the Raptors this season will be reacting to situations and opposing players rather than thinking.

“It is not going to be just one pre-season game and all of a sudden everybody is flying around in their right positions,” the 24-year-old small forward said. “There is going to be film where people are messing up even towards the middle of the season. But those are just little things that we have to clean up.”

RAPTORS NOTEBOOK

Toronto head coach Dwane Casey and small forward James Johnson made sure to mention to the defensive performance of power forward Andrea Bargnani in Sunday’s loss to Boston. Bargnani was Toronto’s leading scorer with 16 points, and had six defensive rebounds, nine in total, in 32 minutes. “I was really, really impressed with Andrea’s defence last night, and coming back in the paint and rebounding. It’s what we have been talking about,” Casey said. “He did an excellent job of really executing defensively, getting out and impacting the ball and coming back into the paint and being a presence in the paint – those things we’re going to keep harping on.” “[Bargnani] played a great defensive game,” Johnson said. “A game probably most people had never seen out of him, and to work both sides of the floor like that was just tremendous to watch.”

Beyond the way he can shape plays on the court, Casey wants the ability to reflect on game statistics immediately. Currently, the person who analyzes specific game and player stats for Toronto works from Japan. Casey is working with the team to get those numbers to his players faster. “The immediate information you get right after a game is very important,” he said. “The time they get it in Japan and the time we get it transferred here is something we’re working on. The important thing is trying to get that information right out of the bat. In Dallas, we had a guy; he was in our coaches meetings so he kind of knew what we were measuring, and we’re going to develop that here – We’ve got in house people here. Right now they are on other assignments.”

Swingman Rasual Butler limped off the Air Canada Centre practice court Monday after tweaking his ankle during drills. Casey did not speak to the team’s trainers before the end of practice, but hoped Butler, who played 20 minutes against Boston, would be OK. Meanwhile, point guard Anthony Carter was still nursing a shoulder injury and guard Leandro Barbosa did not practice after waking up in the morning with a sore back. Small forward Linas Kleiza is still rehabbing from right knee surgery last February. “We’ve got some soldiers down,” Casey said, “but we still have to take what we have and go to war with it.”

Matthew Scianitti, National Post

mscianitti@nationalpost.com

twitter.com/mscianitti

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Rockets-Raptors Preview

Posted on 07 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Houston Rockets haven’t struggled this much since the very beginning of
2012, but another date with the Toronto Raptors may be just what they need to
get back on track.

Houston seeks to avoid a season-high fifth straight defeat Wednesday night
when it visits sputtering Toronto.

The Rockets (21-18) are coming off consecutive overtime losses, falling
105-103 to the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday and 97-92 at Boston on Tuesday.

Those defeats are part of a four-game skid that matches their worst this
season. They also dropped four straight Jan. 3-7.

Tuesday’s loss was also Houston’s fourth straight on the road, and it came
despite having six players score in double figures, led by 18 points each from
Luis Scola and Kyle Lowry.

“We started doing the worst thing you can do on the road: Just start playing
the score as opposed to playing the game,” coach Kevin McHale said. “We lost our
rhythm a little bit and then we just got too conservative trying to run the
clock, trying to play perfect basketball.”

Goran Dragic hit a jumper in the final seconds of regulation to send the
game to overtime, but Scola said it just delayed the inevitable.

“The fact that we played the overtime was a bonus, was a present. We lost
the game before that,” Scola said.

Now the Rockets hope to end their skid against the last team they beat.

Houston shot only 38.7 percent but came away with an 88-85 win over Toronto
on Feb. 28, as Lowry scored a game-high 26 points.

That contest marked the first of three times in the last five games the
Raptors (12-26) have scored fewer than 90 points, and they’re averaging 89.3 for
the season after falling 92-88 to Orlando on Monday.

DeMar DeRozan scored 23 points for Toronto, which has lost 10 of 14. Each of
those defeats has come by seven points or fewer.

“It’s definitely frustrating, especially knowing how many games we had like
that this season that we definitely could’ve won,” DeRozan said. “We just got to
close out teams.”

Coach Dwane Casey lauded his team for another good performance despite
falling short.

“I feel for our guys because they are putting themselves in a position to
win,” Casey said.

The major reason for that is how well Toronto has played defensively of
late. Beginning with the matchup against Houston, the Raptors have held their
last five opponents to 88.2 points per game on 40.8 percent shooting.

DeRozan has done his part offensively as Andrea Bargnani remains sidelined
with a strained calf, averaging 20.8 points and shooting 49.2 percent over his
last eight games.

He had a career-high 37 points at Houston on Dec. 31, 2010, but the Rockets
won 114-105 and will now seek to win three in a row in the series for the first
time since March 5, 2002-March 5, 2003.

They’ll hope for another solid performance from Lowry, who is averaging 19.6
points over his last eight games. However, prior to last month’s meeting with
Toronto, Lowry had shot 36.2 percent and averaged 9.7 points in seven games
versus the Raptors.

If anybody needs tickets to games, remember to click the tickets link at the top.

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Howard, Magic outlast Raptors

Posted on 06 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Orlando big man Dwight Howard had the ball early and often Monday night, but it was teammate J.J. Redick who sealed Toronto’s fate in the game’s final seconds.

Redick’s three-point dagger with less than 10 seconds helped the Magic to a 92-88 win over the Toronto Raptors.

“[Jason Richardson] made a great play to get the ball quickly to me,” said Redick. “I knew we didn’t have a lot of time on the clock, so I just caught it and let it go.”

Howard had 36 points and 13 rebounds and two blocks for his 31st double-double.

Howard had the highlight of the night when he finished off a perfectly-timed alley-oop pass from Redick with a monster two-handed jam in the third quarter.

Redick finished 3-for-4 from three-point range picking up 13 points and six assists.

“Our perimeter guys all shot the ball very poorly tonight,” said Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy. “Trying to decide who you’re going to have down there as the last man wasn’t an easy call, but [Redick] knocked in a big one right then.”

DeMar DeRozan had 23 points for the Raptors (12-26), who were coming off a victory over Golden State on Sunday.

“It’s definitely frustrating, especially knowing how many games we had like that this season that we definitely could’ve won,” said DeRozan. “We just got to close out teams especially against tough teams like the Orlando Magic.”

The loss dropped the Raptors to 0-9 at home this season when trailing after three quarters.

Aaron Gray added 11 points and 11 rebounds for Toronto, picking up his second double-double of the season.

Ryan Anderson had 19 points and 13 boards for the Magic (25-14).

Jose Calderon drained a three from the top of the arc with just over six seconds remaining to cut Orlando’s lead to two, but Redick made two free throws on the next procession to put the Magic back up by four.

“I feel for our guys because they’re putting themselves in a position to win,” said Raptors coach Dwane Casey. “The experience factor, you can’t rush it, you can’t teach it, you can’t give it to them.

“I see fight every night.”

Ex-Raptor Hedo Turkoglu, who came in averaging 11.6 points and 4.6 rebounds, was booed all night by the 15,392 in attendance at Air Canada Centre. Turkoglu finished with no points and nine assists.

After the Magic opened an eight point lead in the second quarter, DeRozan picked up six points to cut the lead to just two. However, Redick drained a 25-foot three-pointer giving Orlando a five-point lead at the break.

Howard had four dunks, many of the highlight variety, leading the way for the Magic in the first quarter with 10 points, giving Orlando the early three-point lead.

Orlando won the only other meeting between the two teams — 102-96 thanks to a late 16-0 run on New Year’s Day.

The two teams wrap-up the season series on March 26 in Toronto.

That’s all for today.

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Stout second-half defence helps Raptors down…

Posted on 05 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

TORONTO – The Toronto Raptors were an irritated bunch at halftime Sunday night, frustrated about being down nine points to the Golden State Warriors — a team that had embarrassed them in their previous meeting nearly one year earlier.

Two sensational quarters later, the Raptors and their fans went home satisfied.

DeMar DeRozan poured in a game-high 25 points and the Raptors limited high-scoring Golden State to a season-low 28 second-half points on the way to an 83-75 victory. The win was just the fifth in 16 games for Toronto, and provided a small measure of revenge for a club that surrendered 84 first-half points in a 138-100 thrashing at the hands of the Warriors in California last March 25.

Thanks to a tenacious stretch of defence from a hungry Raptors team Sunday, Golden State didn’t even reach its first-half total from that blowout.

“I thought our guys did a good job,” said Raptors head coach Dwane Casey. “That first half, we can cancel it out. But the second half, our guys came in and really gave us energy.”

Toronto’s second-half defensive effort may have been its best of the season. The Warriors, who came into the day averaging 97.6 points per game, shot an abysmal 11 for 40 after the break — including a 5-for-22 performance in an 11-point third quarter that allowed Toronto to seize the lead for good.

Casey praised his team for coming out in the second half and making a commitment to shutting down the Warriors — especially after his club had failed to do so two nights earlier, falling apart in the third quarter of a narrow loss to the Memphis Grizzlies.

“I told them (at halftime) to have a nice day, it’s a beautiful Sunday,” he joked. “I challenged them. I told them, ‘The game’s about frustration. It’s how we fight through this … feeling sorry for ourselves, fatigue, whatever it is, that’s not important. What’s important is how we approach our job as NBA players.’

“I challenged them at halftime and they stepped up and that’s what this league is all about … when someone challenges your manhood, you have to step up.”

Limiting three-pointers, second-chance and fast-break points were Casey’s goals coming into the game — and the Raptors accomplished all three. Golden State shot just 4-for-19 from beyond the arc, had only eight second-chance points and scored exactly one fast-break point — 39 fewer than it had in the lopsided win over Toronto last season.

“We have a lot of those little things that you don’t think you should waste time working on that we’ve been working,” said Raptors forward James Johnson, who had 12 points and 12 rebounds. “That’s been a benefit to us.”

David Lee had 22 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Warriors, who fell to 2-3 on a six-game road trip.

“It hurts really bad,” said rookie Warriors guard Klay Thompson. “This was a very winnable game, a team that we thought we were better than. We can’t let it carry over until (Monday) in Washington … (but) this one hurts, it’s going to sting for a while.”

Notes: Toronto overcame a pair of late injury scares. Leandro Barbosa — who scored 18 points in a solid effort off the bench — went down in a heap midway through the fourth quarter but was quickly helped off. Amir Johnson suffered an apparent knee injury but left on his own power. … The Warriors came into Sunday averaging 120.2 points in their previous five games against the Raptors. … A vocal contingent of fans celebrating Lithuanian Heritage Night cheered when Raptors F Linas Kleiza entered the game late in the fourth quarter. Kleiza is the only active Lithuanian-born player in the NBA.

What do you guys think about this.

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Raptors' D produces W against Golden State

Posted on 05 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

TORONTO — As the media rushed behind him and into the Toronto Raptors locker-room, coach Dwane Casey was holding court with three Italians.

Naturally, Casey is well acquainted with his star power forward, the injured Andrea Bargnani, as well as Bargnani’s girlfriend, volleyball player Nabila.

But for the first time, Casey was meeting Bargnani’s silver-haired father, Roberto.

Roberto informed Casey he did well in the televised interview he was watching earlier, in which Casey praised his son. The coach continued on that theme.

“I’m proud of the way he’s played,” Casey told Roberto.

Before his calf injury, Bargnani had made huge leaps. As for the rest of the team, the progress has been more modest. But Casey appreciates it nonetheless. Some of those aspects were evident in the Raptors’ 83-75 win over the Golden State Warriors on Sunday.

“I know it doesn’t show on my face on the sideline or interviews after the game, but I see growth,” Casey said before the game. “I see guys developing and making strides that are subtle, but they’re there. I see different mindsets than we came into training camp with as far as defence is concerned. That was our No. 1 goal, to change that.”

And they have, to an extent. At least they have more than Sunday’s opposition. In Casey’s words, the game “set basketball back a few years,” with the Raptors shooting 37 per cent to the Warriors’ 36 per cent. But this is the type of game that has eluded the Raptors in years past.

Sure, it will be more impressive when they manage such a win over a good team instead of a bad one playing without arguably its best player — Stephen Curry. As Casey mentioned, though, progress can come in degrees.

The game matched two coaches trying to remake the image of their franchises.

Like Casey, Golden State’s Mark Jackson was hired to give a wayward franchise a defensive identity. The Warriors (14-20) have long been known for Don Nelson’s up-and-down style. Unlike Casey, who was hired from the defending champion Mavericks, Jackson was plucked from the broadcast booth. He had no prior coaching experience. The difference has shown.

Last year, the Warriors were 26th and the Raptors were 30th in points allowed per 100 possessions. This year, however, the Warriors have not moved the needle, stuck at 25th. The Raptors have leaped to 17th.

At key moments, the progress, or Golden State’s lack there of, was evident.

DeMar DeRozan, having an off year based on pre-season expectations, got to the rim rather easily on his way to a bounce-back game of 25 points. James Johnson was all over the paint, with 12 points and 12 rebounds.

In total, the Raptors out-rebounded the Warriors 51-41. Golden State scored just 28 points in the second half on 28-per-cent shooting.

Meanwhile, Toronto (12-25) contained Monta Ellis, holding him to eight makes on 22 field-goal attempts. Ellis missed his share of shots that he generally hits, but at some point, the Raptors deserve some of the credit, too.

Casey credited DeRozan and Jerryd Bayless with supplying tough defence on Ellis. He was just as happy with the team’s — and excuse the use of Casey’s favourite word — disposition.

“We challenged them,” Casey said of his halftime message to the players. “I told them the game is about frustrations. It’s about how we fight through this. Feeling sorry for ourselves, fatigue, whatever it is, it’s not important. The important thing is how we approach our job as NBA players.”

The paltry 12 wins can obscure it sometimes, but perhaps this year has not been a complete waste.

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Cold-shooting Golden State Warriors lose to…

Posted on 05 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

TORONTO — Sunday’s performance by the Warriors was especially offensive — just not in the manner they needed.

No doubt, many were offended by Golden State’s abysmal offense in an 83-75 loss to the Toronto Raptors. Including some in the Warriors’ locker room.

“This one hurts,” rookie Klay Thompson said. “This was a winnable game. … We’re better than them.”

The Warriors (14-20) set a season low for points and shot 36.3 percent from the field, including 4 of 19 from 3-point range. They totaled just 28 points in the second half.

Certainly, the Raptors are no pushover defensively. They came into the game ranked ninth in the league in field-goal percentage defense (43.2) and 11th in points allowed

(94.1).

Still, totaling 75 points is anemic for the Warriors even without starting point guard Stephen Curry (sprained right foot), who missed his fourth straight game.

Golden State squandered its chance for a winning record on the trip. They get a chance at redemption Monday at Washington, another Eastern Conference bottom-feeder. But at this point, they’ll just be trying to save face.

“We needed to be at least 3-2 on this road trip,” David Lee said after totaling 22 points and 12 rebounds.

It seemed Golden State had found a rhythm in the second quarter. The Warriors made 10 of 18 shots in the period, turning a two-point lead after one quarter into a 47-38 halftime advantage. Lee had eight points in the second quarter,

and the bench — specifically Nate Robinson, Brandon Rush and Thompson — chipped in 16 points.

After back-to-back baskets by Monta Ellis, a 3-pointer and a turnaround jumper, Golden State held its largest lead of the game, 52-42, with 9:26 left in the third quarter. But the Warriors managed just six points the rest of the period. They missed their next seven shots and over the last 9:26 missed 14 of 17 and turned the ball over four times.

Golden State totaled 11 points in the third

quarter, getting doubled up by Toronto.

Over their last four games, the Warriors have been outscored 103-61 in the third quarter, an average of 10.5 points per game.

Ellis sounded at his wit’s end diagnosing the third-quarter concerns.

“Who knows,” said Ellis, his head buried and his voice just above a whisper. “Don’t know what to tell you. We had a 10-point lead and we came out and … I don’t know.”

For the trip, Golden State is averaging 80.3 points on 37.9 percent shooting.

The Warriors played defense well enough to win Sunday, which would have made them 2-2 on the trip heading to Washington. Golden State limited the Raptors to 37.2 percent shooting with 16 turnovers. Toronto never scored more than 23 points

in a quarter.

“That’s good,” second-year big man Ekpe Udoh said of the defensive result. “Don’t you think?”

So that means this one’s on the offense?

“We didn’t make shots,” Udoh responded.

Lee did, making 9 of 13 from the field. But the rest of the Warriors were 20 of 67 (29.9 percent). Ellis needed 22 shots to get 20 points. Dorell Wright was 1 of 9. Robinson was 2 of 12, missing all seven of his second-half attempts. Udoh was 2 of 7.

For a team that likes to brag about how many scorers it has, you would think topping 85 would be a cakewalk. But Sunday, the Warriors lost because they couldn’t score.

“Period,” Robinson said. “Point blank. Exclamation point.”

  • With Sunday’s 4-for-19

    performance from 3-point range, Golden State is now 13 for 71 from behind the arc for the trip (18.3 percent).

    Perhaps even worse than the Warriors’ low percentage is that they’ve taken so many. An average of 17.75 3-pointers per game is a lot for any team. But a team that can’t find the stroke, why so many 3-pointers?

    The 3-point-shooting numbers are a sign Golden State is settling too much for the outside shot — a bad idea for a team struggling shooting. The Warriors took 80 shots Sunday; 48 came from outside the paint. (Conversely, 40 of Toronto’s 78 shots came inside the paint). Golden State had just one fast-break point.

    “For whatever reason, we’re not shooting the ball well,” Lee said. “We’re setting for a lot of

    jumpers, myself included. … It’s not a situation where you can say, ‘Guys, stop shooting,’ because we’ve got great shooters getting good looks. Guys just have to put in extra work.”

  • Golden State’s 28 second-half points were just four more than the franchise record for fewest in a half. The Warriors had 24 points in the second half against visiting Minnesota on April 9, 2004.
  • Warriors coach Mark Jackson, at the last minute, put Udoh in the starting lineup, sitting Andris Biedrins.

    It was the first time in the Jackson era that Biedrins was healthy but not the starter. Biedrins played a season-low seven minutes, going scoreless with a rebound and two fouls.

    Udoh — who had 19 points, eight rebounds and two blocks his last start, Feb. 20 against the Los Angeles Clippers — didn’t do much better. He totaled seven points, three rebounds and a block in 32 minutes.

    • That’s all for today guys, i’ll be back to blog you tomorrow.

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    DeRozan leads as Raptors defence shuts down…

    Posted on 05 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

    TORONTO – DeMar DeRozan had 25 points and the Toronto Raptors blanketed high-scoring Golden State en route to an 83-75 win over the Warriors on Sunday night.

    Leandro Barbosa added 18 points in a reserve role for the Raptors (12-25), who limited Golden State to 36.3 per cent shooting for just their fifth win in the last 16 games. It was the first meeting between the teams since the Warriors pulverized Toronto, scoring 84 first-half points in a 138-100 laugher in California last March.

    Golden State wasn’t laughing this time; the run-and-gun Warriors (14-20) were held to one fast-break point and turned the ball over 14 times, leading to 18 Toronto points.

    David Lee had 22 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Warriors, who fell to 2-3 on a six-game road trip which wraps up Monday night in Washington.

    Golden State broke out to a nine-point halftime lead but hit just two of its first 12 shots to open the third quarter, allowing the Raptors to climb to within six. A Lee jumper ended the drought but Toronto continued to chip away at the deficit, a DeRozan layup making it a 56-54 game with three minutes left.

    Barbosa’s floating jumper in the lane evened the score in the final minute, and a turnover on the Warriors’ next possession led to a 2-on-1 that DeRozan finished off with an alley-oop dunk of a Jerryd Bayless feed as Toronto led 60-58 entering the fourth.

    A Barbosa three-pointer stretched the advantage to five early in the final quarter, and he found Amir Johnson with a nifty pass for an uncontested dunk near the halfway point of the frame to give Toronto a 73-66 edge. Golden State closed to within four on an Ellis layup, but Barbosa followed with a three from the left corner and the Raptors held on from there.

    Both teams were frigid to start, combining to miss 17 of their first 23 shots in the opening half of the first quarter. A Dorell Wright three-pointer put the Warriors up 14-10, and Lee added a driving two-handed dunk in the closing moments of the period as Golden State enjoyed a 20-18 advantage after one.

    Klay Thompson connected from long range near the three minute mark of the quarter to extend the Warriors’ lead to six, and a Lee 17-foot jumper with 30 seconds left completed a 6-of-7 first-half shooting performance for the star forward as the Warriors went into the break ahead 47-38.

    Notes: Toronto overcame a pair of late injury scares. Barbosa went down in a heap midway through the fourth quarter but was quickly helped off, while Amir Johnson appeared to slip on the court and injure his knee but left on his own power. … The Warriors came into Sunday averaging 120.2 points in their previous five games against the Raptors. … A vocal contingent of fans celebrating Lithuanian Heritage Night cheered when Raptors F Linas Kleiza entered the game late in the fourth quarter. Kleiza is the only active Lithuanian-born player in the NBA.

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    Warriors-Raptors Preview

    Posted on 03 March 2012. Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

    Although facing the Toronto Raptors usually brings out the best in Golden
    State, it might not be enough to get the Warriors’ struggling offense on track
    in the season’s first meeting.

    Golden State, which could again be without Stephen Curry, hopes to break out
    of its funk Sunday night against a Toronto team playing much better defense
    under first-year coach Dwane Casey.

    After averaging 104.3 points in winning two of three games prior to the
    All-Star break, the Warriors (14-19) have since averaged 82.0 points on 38.4
    percent shooting in dropping two of three.

    Against Philadelphia on Friday, Golden State trailed by three points at
    halftime but scored just 36 in the second half of a 105-83 loss.

    “We have to be on all the time,” coach Mark Jackson said. “We have to be
    aggressive. We have to play with force.”

    Part of the reason for Golden State’s sluggish offense stems from Curry’s
    injured right foot.

    Curry, third on the team with 15.7 points per game, has played all of three
    seconds in the last three contests and could be sidelined again. Sitting out
    Sunday could be trouble for Golden State because Curry’s career average of 30.3
    points in four games versus the Raptors is easily his best against any team.

    Led by Curry’s scoring exploits, the Warriors have averaged 120.2 points in
    winning the last five meetings with the Raptors. It’s their longest active
    winning streak over any opponent.

    Monta Ellis also has played a big part in Golden State’s success in this
    series, having scored 55 points on 55.9 percent shooting in two meetings last
    season. His 24.1 career scoring average versus the Raptors is his second-highest
    against any opponent.

    While Golden State has regularly frustrated Toronto, winning 10 of 12
    meetings since 2005-06, its offense – with or without Curry – could have
    problems this time.

    The Raptors (11-25) are yielding an average of 94.1 points – 11.3 less than
    last season – and are 7-4 when holding an opponent to 92 or fewer. They had
    allowed an average of 88.3 points on 39.3 percent shooting over a three-game
    stretch before Friday’s 102-99 loss to Memphis, their ninth defeat in 12 games.

    Toronto had a chance to tie the game, but Jose Calderon’s 3-point attempt
    bounced off the rim with four seconds left and saddled the Raptors with another
    painful loss.

    Five of Toronto’s past eight defeats have been by three points or fewer. The
    Raptors haven’t lost by more than seven points since a 100-64 blowout at Boston
    on Feb. 1.

    “Somewhere the basketball gods are waiting for us to make those plays, to be
    good to us,” Casey said. “Right now, and I’ve seen a lot of NBA games, we’re
    doing everything to win the games except winning games.”

    Jerryd Bayless led six Raptors in double figures Friday with 18 points to
    equal his point total from his previous four games. DeMar DeRozan was held to
    four points after averaging 22.8 in his final five games of February.

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