#1

BOSTON - Depending on whom you ask, it was only a matter of time before the suddenly scorching Toronto Raptors experienced a set

in Vorschläge 13.01.2018 08:03
von jokergreen0220 • 2.255 Beiträge

BOSTON - Depending on whom you ask, it was only a matter of time before the suddenly scorching Toronto Raptors experienced a setback, even a negligible one. Trevor Cahill Jersey . Conditioned to be skeptical following years of false hope, the teams loyal albeit exasperated fan base - or at least a segment of it - has been weary of the dreaded letdown game. "Its the first stinker weve had," coach Dwane Casey said after his much-improved team was stunned by the lowly Celtics, falling 88-83 in Boston, a city in which the Raptors have gone winless over the last six years. It was bound to happen eventually. The Raptors had been remarkably consistent in potential trap games, winning 10 of their last 11 contests against teams with losing records. Still, no one truly believed they would run the table with more than half the season left to be played, no one outside the locker room that is. "No," Kyle Lowry said straight-faced when asked if he saw it coming. "We dont expect to have any letdowns." Its just one game, one night, one of 82. In and of itself, the loss – however disappointing – shouldnt be a cause for concern. Even the best of the best get caught taking their foot off the gas but that doesnt provide solace to a team thats learning to demand more of themselves. "They out-worked us tonight, which is rare for us," Lowry said, his team giving up 19 offensive boards to the Celtics, who had lost nine straight coming into the contest. "It sucks but weve got to learn from this. Everyones pissed off right now, guys are mad and we should be." The Raptors came out flat and could never quite find the groove theyve been playing with for the better part of the last month. It was their most disheartening loss since a Dec. 18 overtime defeat at home to Charlotte and their worst effort since the Spurs ran them out of their own building eight days before that. Leading the division, Toronto owned the best record in the Eastern Conference since its early-December trade. On the other end of the spectrum, the Celtics were quickly sinking to the bottom of the Atlantic, jettisoning their assists-leader to the West Coast hours before hosting the red-hot Raptors on Wednesday. Missing Jordan Crawford, who was traded to Golden State earlier in the afternoon, and Rajon Rondo - expected to return from injury on Friday - the Celtics caught Toronto napping. The Raptors should, but probably wouldnt, appreciate the irony. Undermanned just hours after the Rudy Gay deal was consummated, the Raptors upset the heavily favoured Lakers in Los Angeles just over a month ago. Sometimes youre the windshield, on Wednesday they were the bug. "It started on the boards," Casey said, as the Raptors were out-rebounded 20-7 in the third quarter, when the game began to slip away. "I was disappointed in our rebounding, we just got whipped in every way in the paint." Forward Jared Sullinger grabbed eight of his 20 boards in the third, en route to a career performance. The Celtics sophomore became the first player in the franchises rich history to record at least 25 points, 20 rebounds and four assists in a game since Larry Bird accomplished that feat in 1987. Needless to say, Casey was not thrilled. "None of our bigs did a mans job on the boards tonight (and) thats the ball game," he said. "Anytime you give up that many (second-chance) points, you can point to any big." Jonas Valanciunas had a rough night on both ends of the floor, shooting just 1-of-7 in 23 minutes of action. Amir Johnson was held under 26 minutes, having to leave the game early in the third after tweaking his left ankle. "They played harder than us," Johnson admitted. "We definitely should have come out and won this game." Johnson said the injury did not occur on a specific play, instead it just started to feel sore, similar to what he felt before undergoing surgery on the same ankle in 2011. "It was weird," said Johnson, who was able to return to the game in the fourth quarter after getting treatment in the locker room. "Once I got the tape on it, it felt fine, but it was weird." Johnsons brief absence was costly, Patrick Patterson who had been playing at a high level was underwhelming and Tyler Hansbrough - sitting out his seventh straight, also with a sprained left ankle - was missed. For the first time in over a month Steve Novak was asked to log meaningful minutes as Toronto played catch-up in the fourth. Although the Raptors knocked down 11 threes on 24 attempts from beyond the arch - their fourth straight game with 11 or more treys - both teams shot under 40 per cent from the field. While Boston connected on 26 of their 36 attempts from the line, the Raptors missed a devastating 13 free throws (on 25 attempts), including several down the stretch. Down by as many as 18 in the second half, the Raptors managed to fight back and cut their deficit to three with under a minute remaining. Missed free throws and poor late-game execution was their undoing. "We have to use this as a reminder," said DeMar DeRozan, who led the Raptors with 23 points. "It doesnt matter who we are playing. If its a team we are better than, whatever, teams are still going to go out there and play hard. Boston didnt give up at all. They kept the pressure going on us. They played hard tonight." Yangervis Solarte Jersey . -- Kyrie Irvings last-minute 3-pointer helped seal another victory for Cleveland -- and the Cavaliers longest winning streak since LeBron James left. Cory Spangenberg Jersey . Wearing bib No. 1, Maze skied through the gates cleanly to defend her big first-run lead and finish 0.07 seconds ahead of Anna Fenninger of Austria. Defending champion Viktoria Rebensburg of Germany was third, trailing 0. http://www.baseballpadresofficial.com/dave-winfield-jersey-c-10/ . The move - the latest twist in Greeces nearly three-year financial freefall -- is the first such action by any of the countrys major sports bodies. It immediately halts all domestic track and field competitions, including track meets May 12-13 in several Greek cities.NEW YORK -- Kemba Walker just loves playing at Madison Square Garden. Walker scored 25 points despite suffering a shoulder injury midway through the third quarter and not returning until the middle of the fourth and the Charlotte Bobcats held off a late New York rally to beat the Knicks 102-97 on Tuesday night. "It didnt feel too good at the time. A little pop real quick, but Im fine. I had x-rays and Im fine," Walker said. "I always like winning, especially here against the Knicks. Its always fun." Walker led UConn to the 2011 Big East tournament championship at MSG as the Huskies won five games in five nights. He averaged 21 points against New York last year. Gerald Henderson scored 18 points and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist added 16 for the Bobcats. After falling behind 2-0, the Bobcats took the lead on Walkers 3-pointer and never trailed again. They took their biggest lead of the game, 69-56, on Kidd-Gilchrists two free throws with 9:50 left in the third quarter. But, the Knicks whittled the lead to four, 76-72, on Raymond Feltons jumper with 3:11 left in the third. Charlotte got its lead back up to eight points before settling for an 82-76 advantage after three quarters. Carmelo Anthony scored 32 points to lead the Knicks, but was only 10 for 28 from the field. His back-to-back baskets late in the fourth quarter twice brought the Knicks within two, but every attempt that the Knicks had to take the lead failed. "We dig ourselves these big holes and then we want to fight back and by that time it was a little bit too late," Anthony said. "Tonight was one of those nights." With 16 seconds left, Anthony hit a 3-pointer to get the Knicks within three, 99-96. After a Bobcats turnover, Iman Shumpert was fouled but made only one of two. Henderson then hit his two free throwws with 13 seconds left and the Knicks never got closer. Ozzie Smith Jersey. "The last four or five minutes wasnt easy," said Bobcats coach Steve Clifford. "We had a lot of guys step up and make plays. To me, those are the best kind of games to win." The Bobcats (2-2) are off to their best start since the 2009-10 season when they began 3-2, while the Knicks (1-3) are off to their worst start since that same season when they started off 1-9. "Were happy with it (the record). Its not fun to come out here and lose every night. We put a lot of work into it just like every other team," Henderson said. "So 2-2 is cool now." Walker hit his first three shots of the game, including two 3-pointers, and finished with 10 in the first quarter. He finished the first half with 17 on 7-9 shooting as the Bobcats took a 64-54 halftime lead. The Knicks also suffered a loss in the game, as starting centre Tyson Chandler left midway through the first quarter and never returned with a right knee injury. "We dont know the severity yet," said Knicks Coach Mike Woodson. "We will know more tomorrow morning, but he is a big piece of what we do." The Bobcats opened a 10-point lead, 49-39, on two Ramon Session free throws with 7:10 left in the first half. However, Metta World Peace, who finished with 18 points, scored the Knicks next seven points. Felton and Shumpert each had 14 for the Knicks. NOTES: Felton also left the floor in the first quarter due to a nose bleed, but returned in the second quarter. ... Felton was drafted fifth overall by Charlotte in the 2005 NBA Draft. ... Bobcats Assistant Coach Patrick Ewing is the Knicks all-time leader in points (23,665), rebounds (1,039), blocks (2,758), steals (1,061), and minutes (37,586). "This is home," Ewing said. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '

nach oben springen


Besucher
0 Mitglieder und 1 Gast sind Online

Wir begrüßen unser neuestes Mitglied: jinshuiqian0713
Forum Statistiken
Das Forum hat 2347 Themen und 2356 Beiträge.