While it might be time to officially retire the #WeTheFourth hashtag, the Raptors earned their second overtime victory in as many nights, coming away with a 120-116 victory in Washington.
Toronto opened the game guns blazing to the tune of 13-of-19 shooting, including 7 of 8 from beyond the arc, to take 33 to 30 lead after the first quarter. Kyle Lowry, Greivis Vasquez and Patrick Patterson scored 23 of the team’s 33 points, going a combined 9 for 9 from the field.
The Raps continued shooting fire early on in the second, starting the quarter 5 for 6 and extending their lead to 19 before ultimately taking a 15-point lead into halftime. Terrence Ross led the way, scoring all 8 of his points for the game in the period. The Raptors were active defensively, forcing 6 turnovers in the quarter.
The third quarter was basically a draw. The Wizards went on an early 11-2 run and the Raps responded with an 8-0 run of their own, taking a 16-point lead into the final quarter. Amir was a total stud, scoring ten points on a nifty array of floaters, hooks and jumpers.
The Raptors hit a Wall in the fourth, scoring only 15 points on 30 percent shooting. Wizards’ star point guard, John Wall, repeatedly exploded past Raptor defenders to spearhead a 17-2 run over a four-minute span to bring the Wizards right back into the game. Once again, however, DeMar came up big, scoring four straight points of his own to stop the run. Wall and Kris Humphries continued to chip away at the lead and Paul Pierce tied the game at 109 on a three-point shot with 25 seconds to play. Unlike the game before where the Raptors ran a beautiful handoff play between DeRozan and Amir to create an easy basket on their final possession, this time Dwane Casey opted to have Lou Williams dribble the ball for 23 seconds before ultimately missing a contested 10-foot runner with time running out. The Wizards then missed a tip-in attempt with 0.3 seconds to play on the other end to send the game into overtime.
If the fourth quarter belonged to John Wall, then overtime belonged to Kyle Lowry. The Raptors all-star point guard, who was relatively quiet after an impressive first quarter, came alive in overtime, scoring 7 of the team’s 11 points and icing the game with a clutch free throw with 6 seconds on the clock.
Final Thoughts:
- Although the Raptors blew an 18-point 4th quarter lead, Patrick Patterson and Amir came up with some huge defensive plays at the rim down the stretch. Both guys are playing really well right now.
- Another well-rounded game from DeMar: 15 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists. If this were a comic book, his nickname would be ‘The Run Stopper.’ Second straight night he’s come up with big, momentum-changing baskets down the stretch.
- Props to Lou Williams. His shot selection gets on my nerves, but he hit some insanely difficult shots in the fourth quarter.
- Somebody needs to call a Whaaambulance for NeNe. That guy is such a cry baby.
- Team basketball is back in Toronto and I love it. 6 straight, Boom shaaka laaaka.
