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Raptors Discussion: v72| ECQF | (1) Raptors vs (8) Wizards | Raptors win series 4-2 and advance to EC Semi-Finals

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Maplebeasts

Maplebeasts

I See Demons!!!!!
Oct 26, 2014
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stickty111 said:
Supposedly the best team in the East outplayed in the first half. Cant have things like this for a #1 seed.
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Does the best team in the East hold 1st in the conference by a long shot and win 17 of their last 18 including a current win streak of 10 games, one of which came against the 1st place team in the West. Lol get out of here man.
 
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Atrusai

Atrusai

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I'm starting to get worried that the Cavs will fall to 8th and we'll have to face them in the first round.
 
Budsfan

Budsfan

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Game Preview: Raptors vs. Mavericks | Toronto Raptors

Game Preview: Raptors vs. Mavericks

Holly MacKenzie - Raptors.com
Posted: Mar 16, 2018

Dallas Mavericks (22-46) @ Toronto Raptors (51-17)
When: Friday, March 16th, 7:30 P.M. ET
Where: Air Canada Centre
Broadcast info: TSN4, SN590
LAST MEETING
The Raptors last saw the Mavericks on the road in December, dropping a 98-93 decision in Dallas on Boxing Day. Kyle Lowry led Toronto with 23 points on a night where DeMar DeRozan struggled, shooting just 3-for-16 from the floor. After a close first half, things fell apart for Toronto in the third, when Dallas went on a 17-0 run. The Mavericks were led by J.J. Barea who scored 20 points, and won despite being held to just 13 points in an ugly fourth quarter that saw both teams combine for 29 points. The teams combined to shoot just 5-for-31 from the floor in the final eight minutes of the fourth, and Barea clinched the victory for Dallas with a layup in the final seconds of the game.
LEADING INTO TONIGHT'S GAME
Injury report: For Toronto, the status of Norman Powell (sprained ankle) is unknown. Powell sprained the ankle in a basketball workout on Wednesday, and missed Thursday's game against the Indiana Pacers. For the Mavericks, Seth Curry (left leg surgery) is out, Wesley Matthews (right proximal fibula fracture) is not with the team, and Salah Mejri (right hamstring strain) questionable.
Home sweet home: The Raptors return to the ACC after a three-game road trip where they went 3-0. Toronto is an NBA-best 28-5 at the Air Canada Centre this season. After facing the Mavericks on Friday in a back-to-back, Toronto will also host the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday at 1 P.M. during this homestand.
Taking care of business: Toronto swept their recent three-game road trip, notching victories in New York, Brooklyn and Indiana to stretch their winning streak to a season-high 10 straight games dating back to Feb. 23. The franchise-record is 11 consecutive games, set Jan. 6-30 during the 2015-16 season. Toronto's current streak of 10 in a row is the second longest active winning streak in the league. Thursday's victory in Indiana was also Toronto's eighth straight road win, setting a new franchise record for consecutive road wins.
EXTRA ASSISTS
Points on the board: Toronto has now scored 100 points in a franchise-record 21 straight games (Jan. 28-Mar.13). This breaks the previous record of 20 games, which was first set Jan. 6-Feb 20, 2010.
Miles time: C.J. Miles scored 10 points in his return to Indiana, where he spent three years before coming to Toronto this past offseason. All 10 of those points came in the fourth quarter, where the Raptors outscored Indiana 29-20 to take control of the game and get the W. Miles shot 3-for-6 from the floor in 8:27 minutes of the fourth, including 3-for-4 from beyond the arc as he helped Toronto right the ship and close out the victory.
Taking care of the ball: One thing that the Raptors would like to leave behind on the road is careless turnovers. Toronto turned the ball over 20 times against the Pacers on Thursday, giving up 18 points off their miscues. In comparison, Indiana turned the ball over just eight times, leading to seven points scored for the Raptors.
 
Ignatius Reilly

Ignatius Reilly

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Nov 25, 2010
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Maplebeasts said:
We'll probably have to beat them at some point anyways. Might as well get it done earlier.
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Later is always better, who wants to go out in round 1 if they don't have to?

Having said that, Cavs are in a bit of a free fall, so they may actually be a fairly good one to play early and beat.

Having said that, even with the free fall, any team with LBJ still scares me....
 
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Atrusai

Atrusai

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Maplebeasts said:
We'll probably have to beat them at some point anyways. Might as well get it done earlier.
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What Ignatius said. I'd rather face them in the conference finals after beating up two teams to get some confidence. Our depth should help us the further we go.
 
Budsfan

Budsfan

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Game Preview: Raptors vs. Thunder | Toronto Raptors

Game Preview: Raptors vs. Thunder

Holly MacKenzie - Raptors.com
Posted: Mar 18, 2018

Oklahoma City Thunder (42-29) @ Toronto Raptors (52-17)
When: Sunday, March 18th, 1:00 P.M. ET
Where: Air Canada Centre
Broadcast info: TSN1/3/4, TSN1050
LAST MEETING
The Raptors last saw the Thunder in Oklahoma City, falling 125-107 on the road as Paul George gave a 33-point performance. Russell Westbrook nearly recorded a triple-double for the Thunder, finishing with 30 points, 13 assists and eight rebounds as OKC handed Toronto a loss despite a 23-2 Raptors run in the first half and Toronto leading by 12 in the second quarter. After the early lead, the Raptors went into the half trailing by three, struggled to score after the halftime break, and went into the fourth trailing by 14 points. C.J. Miles led the Raptors with 20 points in the loss while Jonas Valanciunas added 16 and DeMar DeRozan added 15 points.
LEADING INTO TODAY'S GAME
Injury report: For Toronto, Norman Powell (sprained ankle) is listed as doubtful. Powell sprained the ankle in a basketball workout on Wednesday, and missed Toronto's previous two games. For the Thunder, Andre Roberson (left patellar surgery) is out.
11 straight: Thanks to Friday's 122-115 overtime victory against the Dallas Mavericks, the Raptors have now won 11 straight games. This ties a franchise record for most consecutive wins, previously set Jan. 6-30, 2016. What's more, Toronto has won 18 of its last 19 games.
Home court: Toronto enters Sunday's game an NBA-best 29-5 at home, with an opportunity to tie the franchise record for wins at home.. The franchise record for most home victories in a season is 30, set during the 2006-07 season. This year, the Raptors are averaging 112.9 points per game on the Air Canada Centre floor, and have already tied a franchise-record with 12 straight wins at home (Nov. 7 - Jan. 1).
EXTRA ASSISTS
100 club: Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook joined elite company when he recorded his 100th career triple-double on Mar. 13 against the Atlanta Hawks. Westbrook joins Oscar Robertson (181), Magic Johnson (138) and Jason Kidd ( 107) as the only players to record 100+ triple-doubles. On the season, Westbrook is averaging 25.2 points, 10.2 assists, 9.7 rebounds and 1.78 steals per game.
JV in control: Jonas Valanciunas scored 21 points to go with 12 rebounds in Friday's win. He scored five points in the overtime period, making 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch. On the single free throw he missed, he grabbed his own offensive rebound and earned another trip to the line to help clinch the game. Valanciunas has scored 10+ points in a season-high 10 consecutive games. He is averaging 12.5 points and 8.6 rebounds per game this season, ranking 10th in the league with a 56 percent shooting average.
Wright time: The Raptors rested Kyle Lowry on Friday, giving the start to Delon Wright in his absence. Though the team spent the first half trying to find its way without four-time All-Star Lowry, Wright did a solid job filling in, finishing with 15 points, five rebounds, six assists, two steals and a blocked shot. The Raptors were a +13 when Wright was on the floor, only topped by DeMar DeRozan (+19).
 
zeke

zeke

The Dube Abides
Mar 14, 2005
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Ibaka with the Oakley-style knee to the nuts on the way to the basket. awesome.
 
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