Fan Duel Toronto Raptors

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Brown’s big night leads Raptors 905 to 4th win in a row

Back to Hershey from here.

Photo credit: Christian Bonin / TSGphoto.com

Raptors 905 117, Delaware 87ers 92 | Box Score
Assignees: Bruno Caboclo, Alfonzo McKinnie (905), None (87ers)
Two-ways: Lorenzo Brown, Malcolm Miller (905), Devin Robinson [via Wizards], Jacob Pullen (87ers)

At least one team in the Toronto Raptors’ organization is in a groove right now. While the parent club was losing a second in a row in dispiriting fashion to the Oklahoma City Thunder, Raptors 905 were continuing to build some momentum in the G League, emphatically beating the Delaware 87ers on the road 117-92.

The 905 entered here winners of three straight and of four of their last five as they continue on their quest to get back to .500 before refocusing on a loftier playoff goal. The 87ers, who broke an extended winless streak to start the season when they visited Hershey Centre a month ago, looked like a good opponent to keep the momentum up against. Delaware came in winners of six of their last 10, but they’d be playing here with only one of the 76ers’ two-ways, plus Devin Robinson on loan from the Washington Wizards, while the 905 had their full contingent of assignees and two-ways, who made a difference out of the gate.

The G League’s worst 3-point shooting team came out hot from outside, with Bruno Caboclo drilling a pair of early triples and Alfonzo McKinnie following with one of his own after his drive produced a Kennedy Meeks offensive rebound. Meeks was rewarded with a touch shortly after, feathering in a turnaround fadeaway. It would have opened up wider were it not for the 905 struggling on their own glass, as a pair of great stops from Caboclo on Christian Wood post-ups both saw Emeka Okafor swoop in to secure the rebound and create second-chance points. The uncharacteristic 3-point shooting continued for the visitors, as McKnnie hit another and Malcolm Miller got in on the action to open up a 12-point lead.

An 87ers timeout couldn’t cool their opponents down, with McKinnie drilling a third triple off of a nice pass from a trailing Caboclo in transition. All told, a 905 team that came in shooting 31 percent on threes went 8-of-11 from outside in the quarter. Add a tough Kaza Keane scoop-shot and-one and then a buzzer-beating heave to end the frame and just 39-percent shooting for Delaware, and the 905 found themselves ahead 36-24.

The 905 bench couldn’t keep quite that pace from outside, instead relying on Keane getting to the line and some forced turnovers kick-starting the transition game to keep the offense afloat. Those turnovers cut both ways, a hallmark of many 905 games, and the middle portion of the second quarter grew a little sloppy. That opened the window for the 87ers to get back into it, and Christian Wood, in particular, thrived in the disorganization of the pseudo-track meet, using his length and speed on the break for a 10-point quarter.

It took a return of several starters to settle things. McKinnie picked up where he left off shooting from outside, Caboclo turned away Wood at the rim, and Lorenzo Brown got in on the shooting. Outside of Okafor’s presence at the rim, the 87ers didn’t have a lot of answers on defense beyond waiting for regression to set in. It didn’t come here, and when the 87ers tightened up at the arc, Brown used some nice hesitation moves to get back to the rim and Caboclo got to the line. By the break, the starters had extended their hold on the game nearly back to where it was before Delaware pushed back, taking a 15-point lead into halftime.

Delaware’s hope was surely that the outside shooting would come down to earth, and it did – the 905 shot 5-of-24 on threes over the game’s final three quarters, they just made up for that with some excellent defensive energy in the second half. They also took care of the ball much better than they normally do, something that’s often given opponents a window to stick around in games or to make quick comebacks. Limiting the miscues to 13 is a win for them, and Brown in particular struck a terrific balance deciding when to push and attack and when to sit back and take what Delaware was giving him.

What Delaware was giving him was often too much room to operate, and Brown’s third quarter was masterful as he helped the 905 pull away. The 87ers may have bought into the 905’s shooting a bit too much, and Brown was able to keep scrambling defenders off balance with hesitation moves and Euro-steps and hitting his screeners with crisp pocket-passes. When Brown did miss, offensive rebounders were there to clean up, grabbing 15 in the game. 87ers coach Eugene Burroughs grew frustrated midway through the third and opted for the rare full five-man change, but the damage was already done, the gap having ballooned to 27.

Delaware would chip that down to 17 early in the fourth, it was just too late to stage the full comeback. They ran out of gas as the 905 realized there was still a risk of a comeback and locked back in on defense, and Meeks buckets sandwiched around Brown being fouled on a three more or less put things away with five minutes to play. The close-out from there was rote, though head coach Jerry Stackhouse waited until there were about 90 seconds left to empty the bench, just to be safe. (He also may have wanted to keep getting players work coming off of a few days off.)

It’s an outing that has to have Stackhouse encouraged by how his team looked offensively. There’s the obvious caveat that the 905 were playing with more NBA talent than the 87ers, but that’s probably going to be the case a lot the next little while, and it buys the players who were originally meant as development projects more time to get ready for later-season run.

This also marks four consecutive wins and five in the last six games for the 905, and their next three all come at Hershey Centre over four days around New Year’s. With the G League Showcase coming shortly after, they’re faced with a great opportunity to get back to .500 – they’re now 9-10 – and use the Showcase as the start of their push back to playoff contention in earnest.

Notes

  • Assignment notes
    • Bruno Caboclo cooled off some after the hot start, finishing 4-of-11 from outside and 7-of-17 overall. Still, 19 points on 19 used possessions isn’t a terrible night for a team that struggles to produce offense sometimes, and he added eight rebounds, two assists, and three blocks. He was a plus-24 in 35 minutes and continues to do nice things on the defensive end, even away from the rim, that are helping this group hold opponents to a bottom-two offensive rating.
    • Alfonzo McKinnie hitting 4-of-7 on threes really stands out here. He’s up to 20-of-48 on the season with the 905, good for 41.7 percent. Considering that’s his biggest area for improvement to make the leap, it’s an encouraging start. He was solid all over here, too, finishing with 19 points, nine rebounds, and a plus-15 in 28 minutes.
  • Other 905 player notes
    • Lorenzo Brown was terrific scoring the ball, pouring in 30 points on 12-of-19 shooting. He also dished four assists, a little low for him, and cut his turnovers down to just one, something that’s plagued him at times this year with such an immense load on his shoulders. The 905 were a tremendous plus-35 in his 30 minutes. He remains a borderline MVP-level player whenever he’s at this level.
    • Malcolm Miller had a quiet scoring night with eight points, working more as a spacer and secondary playmaker with the full contingent of NBA players in the lineup. He dished four assists and was a massive plus-32 in 27 minutes.
    • Kennedy Meeks had a big double-double with 12 points and 15 rebounds. He created a ton of his offense for himself by hitting the offensive glass and also turned away three shots…Kaza Keane continues to be a pest defensively and added 11 points here.
  • 87ers notes: Jacob Pullen’s time with the 76ers seems to have made him more confident, though his outside shot wasn’t there in this one…James Blackmon Jr. poured in 22…Christian Wood’s offensive decision-making has improved, and he’s a little more conservative with his trigger-finger…Shouts to Emeka Okafor.
  • The 905 now return home for three games at Hershey Centre over four days around the new year (Dec. 30, Dec. 31, Jan. 2). A friendly reminder that promo code “REPUBLIC905” will get you a discount at this link all season long.