Subject :TORONTO -- Kyle Lowry and the Toronto Raptors made up for a sub-par road performance by continuing t
TORONTO -- Kyle Lowry and the Toronto Raptors made up for a sub-par road performance by continuing their mastery of the Minnnesota Timberwolves. Deron Williams Jersey . Lowry had 24 points to lead Toronto to a 94-89 victory before an Air Canada Centre sellout crowd of 19,800, the Raptors 10th straight home win over Minnesota and 17th in 18 head-to-head meetings. More importantly, it came just two nights after a disappointing 88-83 road loss to the Boston Celtics. "It was a bounce-back game for us and we needed it," Lowry said. "We did a good job in executiing our gameplan. "They made it close but we pulled it out." The Raptors captured a season-high sixth straight home victory. The last time they did that was Jan. 17-Feb. 10, 2010 when they won eight in a row. On Friday, Toronto wore its special Canadian Forces fourth jersey -- camo green with black-- as part of Armed Forces Night to improve to 10-8 at home. Amir Johnson added 19 points for Toronto while Terrence Ross had 16 points and DeMar DeRozan scored 15 points. Kevin Martin had 18 points for Minnesota (18-21), which has lost three straight and four of its last five to drop to 7-13 on the road. Kevin Love added 16 points. A big key for Toronto was its long-range shooting. The Raptors hit on 11-of-24 attempts from beyond the arc -- Lowry was 6-of-9 alone -- while Minnesota was just 3-of-18. However, it was Martins three-pointer -- his second of the game -- that helped the pesky Timberwolves pull to within 85-83 with just over a minute remaining. But DeRozans basket gave the Raptors a 87-83 advantage. Then, after Minnesota failed to convert on offence, Lowry cemented the win with a three-pointer with 14.6 seconds remaining for a 90-83 advantage. "It was a big shot," Lowry said. "It was one of those shots where we could finally kind of relax a little bit. "Everyone is just trusting each other, everyone has confidence in each other and if you miss (a three-pointer) you know youll probably get another one." Toronto averaged 108 points and made 43 per cent of its three-pointers in sweeping a three-game homestand before heading to Boston. But the Raptors were also solid defensively against a Minnesota team that was averaging 107.1 points per game. "I thought they bounced back as a team from the other night," Toronto coach Dwane Casey said. "I think we were disappointed that we got ambushed in Boston, they attacked us. "They (Timberwolves) are a very good team, very explosive offensive team. Coach (Rick) Adelman, a lot of coaches in this league steal from him . . . Im still stealing from him. Hes an offensive mind, he doesnt get enough credit for it." Adelman, who coached Lowry for three seasons in Houston, had nothing but praise for his former player. "Hes always played at a high level but hes shooting the ball really well," Adelman said. "A lot better than anytime from the three-point line, the floor and the free-throw line. "Thats a big difference but hes always been a solid player." As for Lowry, he said Adelman is by far his favourite NBA coach. "Nothing against coach Casey but Rick is my favourite coach because he gave me my opportunity to show my skills.," Lowry said. "He really is my favourite coach of all time." Toronto finds itself on a nice roll, having won 13 of its last 18 games. But thats of little solace to Casey. "Im not satisfied and I dont think the players are," he said. "Were not the hunted, weve got to be the hunter. "If we dont play (as) the hungry, desperate team, more nights like Boston are going to happen. I thought we played like an underdog tonight and we didnt play that way against Boston." Johnson had nine third-quarter points to help give Toronto a 69-61 advantage but it was Lowrys two three-pointers that put the Raptors ahead 67-53. They came after DeRozan converted a technical foul on Minnesotas Corey Brewer after he received his fourth personal foul. But Jose Barea hit three straight field goals before Ross countered to put Toronto ahead 69-59 late in the quarter. Bareas two free throws put the Raptors advantage to eight points heading into the fourth. Minnesota ended the second quarter on a 9-0 run to cut Torontos half-time advantage to 44-40. Nikola Pekovic anchored the late run with two field goals and a free throw en route to 11 first-half points while DeRozan and Lowry both added 10 points for the Raptors. Toronto shot 44 per cent from the field (16-of-41) and held Minnesota to 39 per cent shooting (16-of-41). But the Raptors dominated from three-point range, hitting on 5-of-12 shots while Minnesota missed on all six of its attempts beyond the arc. Toronto led 22-15 at the end of the first, hitting on 10-of-21 shots (47.6 per cent) from the field while Minnesota shot just 2-of-23 (26.1 per cent). The 15 first-quarter points was a season-low for a Raptors opponent this season. Toronto surged into a 12-2 lead with a 10-0 run early in the first before Minnesota pulled to within 17-15. But Rosss three-pointer and a field goal from Johnson late in the quarter gave the Raptors their seven-point advantage. NOTES -- Former Raptor Rudy Gay had a season-high 33 points in leading Sacramento past Minnesota on Wednesday night . . . The Timberwolves came into Fridays game with a dismal 3-15 road record against Toronto all-time . . . Torontos next game is Sunday afternoon hosting the Los Angeles Lakers. Minnesota returns home to host the Utah Jazz on Saturday night, a squad theve lost five straight games to . . . Minnesota went 0-2 against Toronto last year, with Love missing both games due to injury. Greivis Vasquez Nets Jersey . Ricciardos exclusion from the results tarnished what had been a day of celebration for local fans, who were jubilant that the Red Bull driver had apparently become the first Australian to finish on the podium at his home race. However just before midnight, stewards ruled that Ricciardos car had "exceeded consistently the maximum allowed fuel flow" and that the team refused an instruction from the races technical delegate Charlie Whiting to change the fuel-flow sensor before the race and a further request during the race to reduce the fuel flow. Drazen Petrovic Nets Jersey . The 31-year-old Russian dominated the No. 3-ranked Ferrer throughout, breaking the defending champion and local favourite four times on the indoor hard court.SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- David Lee had 23 points and 11 rebounds, Klay Thompson scored 18 points and the Golden State Warriors held off the Sacramento Kings 101-92 on Wednesday night in a game both teams played short-handed. Stephen Curry added 13 points and eight assists for the Warriors (32-22) in the first game following the All-Star break for each team. Golden State is 3-0 against Sacramento this season. With both centres out with injuries and a shorter roster from trades each team made earlier in the day, the depth of the Warriors was just too much for the Kings to overcome. Isaiah Thomas had 26 points and seven assists, and Travis Outlaw scored 18 points for a Sacramento (18-36) team thats headed for an eighth straight losing season. Quincy Acy grabbed a career-high 12 boards to help the Kings outrebound the Warriors 49-35, but Sacramento committed 21 turnovers, fading in the closing minutes. The game was played in the aftermath of a busy day for both Northern California teams. The Kings traded guard Marcus Thornton to Brooklyn for veterans Jason Terry and Reggie Evans in the afternoon. Just before tipoff, the Warriors acquired point guard Steve Blake from the Los Angeles Lakers for reserves Kent Bazemore and MarShon Brooks. Andrew Bogut also missed his fifth straight game for the Warriors with a left shoulder injury. DeMarcus Cousins, who strained his left hip flexor in Sacramentos final game before the break in New York, also sat out. Both centres are day to day. The Kings dropped to 0-8 without Cousins this season but still led 76-75 entering the fourth quarter. Chris McCullough Jersey. . The Warriors quickly put together a pair of scoring spurts to pull away. Lee converted a layup through traffic, Thompson made a 3-pointer and Andre Iguodala hit a fadeway jumper in an 8-0 run that gave Golden State an 86-79 lead early in the fourth. After the Kings started to rally, Iguodala found Draymond Green for a dunk, and Lee followed with a layup that put the Warriors up 94-84 with 3:28 remaining that all but sealed it. Most of the game played out in similar fashion. The Warriors went ahead by 10 points in the first quarter and 15 in the second, spreading the floor and moving the ball fast without any true centres on the court. The Kings had come back each time, though, playing just like the two-faced team theyd been before the All-Streak break -- prone to scintillating scoring spurts but, at times, lacking defence and discipline -- that buried them at the bottom of the Western Conference standings. Sacramento scored the final nine points of the third quarter, including the last six by Thomas, to take a 76-75 lead before the Warriors pulled away for good. NOTES: The teams meet for the final time this season April 4 in Oakland. ... Recently retired NFL tight end Tony Gonzalez, a former star at California, sat in a courtside seat between Kings owner Vivek Ranadive and team executive Chris Mullin. ... The Warriors are hoping Blake will be in uniform when they host Houston on Thursday night in Oakland. ... Terry and Evans should have plenty of time to make it to Sacramento before the Kings host Boston on Saturday night. Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys China NFL Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
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