OFFENSIVE FOULLLLLLLLLLL pic.twitter.com/IuHfNRDI0E
— Raptors Republic (@raptorsrepublic) March 21, 2022
Gary said outta my face 😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/whVTfwbOqX
— Raptors Republic (@raptorsrepublic) March 21, 2022
Precious Achiuwa just clamped James Harden in crunch time. Precious Achiuwa just clamped James Harden in crunch time. pic.twitter.com/doqwJ6RnsI
— Raptors Republic (@raptorsrepublic) March 21, 2022
10 things: Siakam, Achiuwa step up in impressive win for Raptors – Sportsnet
The Raptors kept themselves in the game with offensive rebounding: It was an ugly game for most of the night, as both Trent Jr. and Barnes were woeful while Fred VanVleet and OG Anunoby sat out due to injuries. However, the Sixers were never able to establish a lead after the first quarter because of how tirelessly the Raptors worked on the offensive glass. Even though the Sixers have Embiid in the middle, they are actually below average in terms of defensive rebounding, and it’s because they’re small on the perimeter. The Raptors had three players who collected five offensive rebounds each, while that was the total number the Sixers had as an entire team. Part of this comes down to coaching philosophy as well, as Doc Rivers ignores the glass to prioritize transition defence, whereas Nurse presses his team’s advantage in length and athleticism. The added advantage of offensive rebounding is that it tires the opponent out, especially in the case of Embiid, who is asked to carry the team on both ends.
Raptors’ defence stands tall, limiting Harden, Embiid in win over 76ers – Sportsnet
It was the early story of the game. The Sixers jumped out to a 28-12 lead, but Harden and Embiid were only tangentially involved. In addition to Thybulle’s quick start, Tyrese Maxey — who has emerged as Philly’s third option after the ‘big two’ — took advantage of the operating room available as he scored nine points in the first nine minutes, including a steal and a fast break that gave the Sixers their 16-point lead.
But Toronto began playing to its identity soon after that. A Barnes three and a floater helped change the momentum as Toronto cut the Sixers’ lead to 10 to start the second quarter. At that point, Boucher knocked in a three and scored three times on offensive rebounds to pull Toronto within six.
And then Achiuwa — the 22-year-old second-year big man who has made huge strides since the All-Star break –- showed why has earned Nurse’s trust and the spot start in place of VanVleet as he hit two threes and a floater in close succession. But perhaps equally indicative of his growth was when he grabbed an offensive rebound but rather than force it up in a crowd — a guarantee earlier in the season — he dribbled out and found Trent Jr. who in turn drove the lane and dished to Siakam for a dunk. By the time Barnes was able to get a left hand above the rim to tip in yet another rebound just before the buzzer, Toronto was able to take a 57-54 lead into the half.
Along the way, the Raptors were able to limit the Sixers stars. They played long stretches of zone, always with an eye having help available whenever Harden or Embiid attacked. They sent a second defender at them when needed and between Khem Birch, Achiuwa and Boucher, Nurse generally kept at least two of the Raptors not-so-big trio of bigs on the floor.
For the most part it worked as the Sixers pair were a combined 6-of-18 from the floor and — perhaps just as importantly — combined for only six free-throw attempts in the first half.
But the Raptors have had trouble scoring in the half-court all season and never more than when VanVleet and Anunoby – two of their best three-point shooters – are out. Fortunately Siakam was able to generate some offence — he scored 10 of the Raptors’ 12 points in the third. Outside of Siakam, who was 4-of-7, Toronto shot just 1-of-17 in the period. Toronto went scoreless for five minutes and a 12-0 run by the Sixers allowed them to take a 74-69 lead to start the fourth.
“It’s something I’m trying to get better at, just reading situations and knowing when to attack or when to be more in pass mode or whatever the case might be,” said Siakam.
In the end the Raptors were able to grind out another key win and show that they have a defensive approach that can work against some of the best players in the NBA. It bodes well. The Raptors have 11 games left to lock in their playoff seed but are unquestionably trending in the right direction.
“I know it’s important because we’d really like to make the playoffs. I think our team needs that experience,” said Nurse. “My bigger concern I think all the time is can we go out there and play? Can we go out there and look these really good teams eye to eye and go compete and believe we can win and execute to win? And if we believe we can and compete as hard as we’ve been competing, we’re going to get our share, we’re going to deserve to get our share of wins.”
The star-laden Sixers would have no choice but to agree.
Tyrese Maxey: 19 points, four assists, one rebound
The second-year guard raced out to nine points in the first 8.5 minutes, punctuated by a 70-second stretch when he scored seven straight points for the Sixers. He went 2 of 4 from deep, converted numerous impressive finishes in the paint and snagged a few transition opportunities as well. Given the degree to which Philadelphia’s offense stalled, it probably should’ve featured him more in crunch-time. He was superb on a night all three of Embiid, Harden and Harris were subpar (or worse). Another impressive outing for the 21-year-old.
Matisse Thybulle: 12 points, four blocks, three steals, two rebounds
For the second consecutive game, Thybulle scored in double-figures. Burying a pair of threes and finishing inside on a slick feed from Harden, he notched eight of the Sixers’ first 12 points to kick off the game. He later discovered a couple more scoring chances by moving well without the ball, particularly along the baseline, and even had a few valuable connective passes.
Defensively, he pestered Toronto, forcing two turnovers on his go-to poke-from-behind move and spurred another by lurking in the backcourt to muddy an outlet pass. His timing and agility were on display across his four swats, headlined by a marvelous rejection of Chris Boucher inside. Struggles from an assortment of other Sixers spoiled a fantastic Thybulle game.
Recap: Toronto Raptors defeat Philadelphia 76ers 93-88 in defensive battle – Raptors HQ
Clinging to a 90-88 lead with seven seconds to go, Boucher stepped in to block a potential game-tying James Harden drive. As Harden prepared to release a running lefty layup, he brought his right elbow up — right into Boucher’s kisser.
The shot came up short, Boucher sprawled to the court — and the officials called Harden for the offensive foul. After review the refs upgraded it to a flagrant-1, and the Raptors sealed the game at the free throw line, eventually winning 93-88.
The game-sealing play was cathartic for the Raptors, who were on the wrong end of several questionable calls on the night, including a very similar call against Boucher on what looked like a clean block of a Harden drive in the third quarter.
Boucher played 22.5 of the final 24 minutes — he started the second half for Precious Achiuwa, to balance the Raptors’ scoring — and finished with 12 points, 14 rebounds, a block and a steal. He also drew a charge on Harden earlier in the fourth, part of a 13-5 Raptors run that opened the final frame.
Boucher’s young teammates in the frontcourt — specifically Scottie Barnes and Precious Achiuwa — were also fantastic on the night, much as they were on Friday night. Barnes finished with 13 points, six rebounds and four assists, and Achiuwa with 21 points and nine boards, as well as some sensational defense on both Harden and Joel Embiid.
But also like Friday — where a botched inbounds play between the two may have cost the Raptors the game — the pair were a little shaky down the stretch. They combined to miss 3-of-4 free throws in the final 15 seconds, setting up Harden’s potential game-tying drive.
Thankfully, the Raptors escaped with their sixth straight road win.
Raptors extend road streak with big win in Philadelphia | The Star
There is a relentlessness to the Raptors that has to be appreciated and stands them in good stead almost every night.
They go through scoring droughts and don’t hang their heads; they get behind and keep coming and they are competitive and close in almost every game.
It happened again Sunday in Philadelphia. A group missing two key starters fell behind early but kept at it and kept at it and kept at it. And they were rewarded for it.
The Raptors won their sixth straight road game despite three missed free throws in the final 15 seconds, beating the Philadelphia 76ers 93-88. They won in dramatic fashion as Chris Boucher took an offensive foul from James Harden — it was eventually ruled a flagrant foul — to seal the game.
“I love it, being in these close games,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. “It’s so good for these guys, Scottie (Barnes) and Precious (Achiuwa) and Gary (Trent Jr.) that have never been in them. They need as much of them as they can (get). I realize they can go either way, and it isn’t much fun when they don’t go your way, but they’re really good for us nonetheless.”
The frontcourt combination of Achiuwa and Boucher provided 33 points and 23 rebounds for the Raptors and helped harass Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid into a 6-for-20 shooting night. It was part of a mix-and-match rotation Nurse used to throw different looks at the Sixers.
It took the Raptors about a quarter to get into the game after starting a new big group that had a hard time figuring things out.
With Fred VanVleet resting his sore right knee — he is expected to play Monday in Chicago, according to Nurse — and OG Anunoby still out, Toronto started Achiuwa and Khem Birch in a jumbo-sized frontcourt along with Pascal Siakam.
Raptors Eke Out Thrilling Comeback Victory Over 76ers – Sports Illustrated
Siakam’s Passing Better than Ever Before
Pascal Siakam’s game has reached a new high.He may not have been an All-Star this year, but the 27-year-old forward is playing the best basketball of his career. It’s not just the scoring and offensive workload he’s asked to carry night after night without Kyle Lowry, Kawhi Leonard, or, at times this season, any three-point shooting alongside him. Rather, it’s his playmaking that’s developed to the point that Toronto is comfortable letting him run the offense in the half-court, confident that the 6-foot-9 point forward will create something out of nothing.
“He’s just more comfortable,” Fred VanVleet said earlier in the week. “He’s seeing, you know, pretty much primary scorer coverage for two or three years now. So for him to just get more comfortable with that: he knows when to pass, he knows when it’s fake help and they’re bluffing so he can back out and re-attack.”
Siakam’s feel for opposing defenses is as good as it’s ever been. He’ll penetrate into the paint, await the double team, then find the open man as he did to the tune of five assists Sunday night. He found Achiuwa for a pair of three-pointers in the second quarter and made savvy dump-off passes to Scottie Barnes when the Raptors rookie snuck behind the 76ers’ defense for inside layups.
His 26 points Sunday night coupled with the offensive creation and rebounding prowess has thrust him squarely into All-NBA conversation despite his unusual All-Star snub.
Boucher finishes off gutsy win over Sixers by Raptors | Toronto Sun
But steady from the end of the first quarter right on through the end of the game was a defensive focus that kept the Raptors in a game they had little business being in and ultimately was the difference in earning them a hard-fought 93-88 win.
Without Fred VanVleet who was resting his sore knee with the Raptors playing a back-to-back, the Raptors were up against it, but if this team has proven anything this season, it’s that big games with or without their best are where they are at their best and they proved it again last night.
Again, this one didn’t come easy as the Raptors stumbled at the free throw line with Achiuwa and Scottie Barnes just managing one of four in the final seconds to give the Sixers multiple opportunities.
Boucher took care of that in a most painful way as he stood in against a driving James Harden who led with his right elbow taking Boucher squarely on the chin.
Boucher stayed down for quite some time, but when he did get up he was rewarded with a flagrant penalty one on Harden giving him a pair of free throws and possession.
Boucher made both to seal the game.
It was just the third time in 11 games that the Sixers have lost since Harden joined them from Brooklyn.
Down by 16 in that awful first quarter, the Raps got all the way back to take a three-point lead into the second half
In lockstep with that defensive focus from the Raptors was a teamwide commitment to the offensive glass, a real area of expertise for the Raptors for most of the season but growing with each game lately.
Through the first half, the Raptors had an unbelievable 14 offensive boards offsetting the obvious advantage the Sixers were enjoying at the free throw line.
The Raptors were being outshot by the Sixers but those second chance opportunities were huge for Toronto.
