This one came down to mistakes and where the Mavs were turning the ball over through the first half and giving up points like they didn’t care, that generosity was repaid in kind and then some by the Raptors over the final two quarters on the way to a 99-92 win. Playing their fourth game in five nights eventually seemed to take their toll on the Raps who were at least ahead through much of this one for three quarters. “Our fatigue turnovers got us,” head coach Dwane Casey said. “The turnovers were crucial, they were brutal. They led to baskets at the other end. Some of them were forced but some of them were unforced. I thought that was the difference in the second half.” What also didn’t help was the Raptors top two scorers went almost stone cold in the final two quarters. Between them, Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan were a combined 3-for-16 in the second half. Mix that with the 20 points off 12 turnover in the half the Mavericks were gifted and it’s pretty easy to see how a game that had looked so good for the Raptors for three quarters could wind up in the loss column.
After squandering an 18-point advantage in Monday’s loss to the Pelicans it was deja vu the following night. Facing one of the West’s top teams in the Mavs, Toronto raced out to another promising start, shooting 53 per cent from the field in the first half, including 5-of-12 from three-point range. As Dallas began to gnaw away at its deficit in the third, like New Orleans had done 24 hours earlier, the Raps fell apart down the stretch. Why? As usual, Patrick Patterson put it best. “Maybe just getting too comfortable,” the candid forward said, attempting to explain similar collapses on consecutive nights. “We build up strong leads and I think just getting too lackadaisical, getting too comfortable, getting in a lot of iso situations rather than keep moving the ball, keep sharing the ball, keep executing our offence. I think we rely too much on just one, two passes and go straight into an iso. And whenever the opposing team makes a run, then I think people try to pick up the slack and put everything on their back. And it’s hit or miss, it’s 50/50, it either goes in or it doesn’t go in and when it’s not going in they come back and I think that’s what’s happened the last couple games.”
A big bench showing in the second half helped the Mavericks to a 13-point comeback win against the Raptors on Tuesday. The major storyline from this game may be Rajon Rondo’s third quarter benching, and perhaps it’s hard to untangle the two consider Dallas started their comeback after he sat. However, this recap will focus on the win itself, an important one with a tough trip to Atlanta coming on Wednesday. Discussion about Rondo and Carlisle can be funneled here. The Mavericks really did need this win. Playing the Hawks on the road on the second night of a back-to-back is as close to a schedule loss as you can get. By beating Toronto, the Mavericks move into sole possession of the no. 5 seed in the Western Conference and earn two wins without Chandler Parsons, whose importance was clearly seen in his absence for stretches of this game. It was a bipolar performances for the Mavericks, who looked dominant for stretches with strong defense, and inept at other moments with self-inflicted turnovers. The Raptors stretched their lead to 64-53 early in the third quarter before Dallas finished the quarter 19-14 to close within three.
Big fourth quarter pushes Mavericks past Raptors | The Smoking Cuban
“They’re playing their fourth in five nights, so they’re a little worn down. We just needed to keep the pressure on them and we had to keep attacking – which we did,” Carlisle said. Five players scored in double figures including 20 from Ellis and 18 from the Big German. Barea scored eight of his 13 in the final quarter while Devin Harris and Richard Jefferson added 14 and 11 points, respectively. Aminu grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds while Dirk added nine. He came in with an average of 6.1 on the season and nine in his past four games.
Toronto Raptors drop 3rd in a row, lose to Dallas 99-92 | Raptors Cage
Toronto came out with energy tonight, doing all of the positive things required for a team to be successful on the road. They were feeding the ball inside to Jonas Valanciunas, they were attacking the paint and getting to the line and their offence was getting good looks thanks to their defensive intensity. Everything looked good until the Mavericks defence clamped down on Toronto, forcing them into many difficult shots and rushed possessions. Kyle Lowry‘s struggles continued through this game as he finished with a line of just 11 points & 6 assists. With the Splash Brothers coming into town, we’re going to need KLow7 to return to his all-star form.
Raptors fall short against Mavs in Dallas | Toronto Star
James Johnson, who’s been given the task of trying to guard the opposing team’s top players as he’s cemented his spot in the Raptors’ starting five over the last month or so, has no shame in admitting he admires Nowitzki. “Dirk’s upside is just ridiculous. The way he creates space, the way he can shoot in tight spaces, and the way he competes every night. It’s a blessing just to be on the opposing team with him,” said Johnson, shaking his head in awe while discussing the Mavs’ big man. Together with Amar’e Stoudemire, picked up in a deal with the Brooklyn Nets ahead of the NBA’s trade deadline last week, the Mavs have a formidable front court. One that Johnson says his younger self would have been thrilled to be around. “Man, two guys that I idolized growing up. Those guys have been doing it for a long time,” said Johnson.
Toronto Raptors: Emerging Trend of Late Losses | Raptors Rapture
Tonight, the Raptors once again fell apart down the stretch, The Mavericks took the game 97-92, after the Raptors gave up 25 points in Q4 and only earned 15 points of their own. Another come from behind loss generated by poor defending and uninspiring offence. The Raps needed a hero, much like Kyle Lowry often made himself during DeMar DeRozan’s extended injury absence. They needed someone to make big plays and fire the whole team up. Alas, the hero never came.
Quick Stat Hits: DeMar DeRozan the Scorer | Raptors HQ
So DeRozan is fantastic in transition (and in cuts and putbacks, but those are very small samples), which makes up only 10 percent of his possessions. His spot up shooting is bad though. Now let’s take a look at the play types that are indicative of a play that either is run for the player, or has the player initiating the offence. These include isolation, of course, along with pick-and-roll ball handler, post ups, hand offs and off screen plays. (These last two are pretty much the same thing, the difference being when they get the ball – before or after the screen. These two plays are the Raptors’ bread and butter as they run Horns quite often, though some of those plays get filed under pick and roll). Notice the pattern? Outside of post ups, he’s consistently inefficient, between 72 and 78 ORTG for isolation, pick and roll, hand off, off screen and even spot up shooting. As a note, only Vasquez is less efficient in isolation (he’s also done it only a third as much, in 20 more games). That includes JV and his 10 isolation attempts (80 ORTG). Only Terrence Ross is worse in pick and roll. Only Vasquez is worse in hand off situations (turns out GV is kind of bad). No one is worse in off-screen situations.
Toronto Raptors will be happy to leave schedule woes behind | Toronto Star
“A lot of the stuff we did the other night (in Houston) was (because of) physical fatigue but mental fatigue also. Some of the mistakes we made were very correctable,” said Casey. The Raptors have also been battling some injuries. Saturday, they struggled from the floor without the sharpshooting skills of Lou Williams, who was sidelined with a sprained ankle. In Monday’s late 100-97 collapse against the Pelicans, they were without small forward Patrick Patterson. The second-unit stalwart, and occasional starter, was out with a sprained knee. Raptors opponents have also been shorthanded. The Pelicans were missing Davis and his replacement Ryan Anderson, who were out with a sprained shoulder and sprained knee, respectively. The Rockets were missing perennial all-star Dwight Howard, sidelined since late January with an edema in his knee. (One common cause of edema, according to the Mayo Clinic, is prolonged sitting in one position. Houston is typically one of top flying mile teams in the league. Last season they were 10th, with over 40,000 miles travelled during the season).
Photo by LM Otero/AP
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