The Toronto Raptors continued their five-game road trip into the Barclays Center to face the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday night, ultimately battling back from a slow start to win 119-109.
The win marked Toronto’s fourth straight victory against the Nets and their fourth win in the month of November, matching the Raptors’ win total in all of the month last season.
Toronto has won five of its last six games, battling back from a 1-4 start to improve its record to 6-5. It’s been sparked by Immanuel Quickley, who finished with a season-high 24 points to go along with eight rebounds, five assists, and two steals.
Over his last three games, the 26-year-old is averaging 21.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists and is shooting 45.8 per cent (11-of-24) from distance.
The Nets, on the other hand, now drop to a league-worst 1-10 and remain winless at home (0-6).
Opening the scoring in this one was eighth overall pick Egor Demin, who drained a three. In his third career start, the rookie put together one of his best games as a pro, finishing with 16 points, five assists, and four rebounds.
Pair Demin’s fast start with a Nic Claxton lob, who drew a technical free throw on top of that, and the Nets jumped out to an early 6-0 lead. Another pair of Claxton buckets — who finished with a season-high 21 points to go along with eight rebounds, four assists, and four stocks — helped extend the Nets’ lead to 13-6, as the team started 5-for-5 from the field. This led to a Darko Rajakovic timeout, not even three minutes into the game.
The lobs in the pick-and-roll continued to eat the Raptors alive defensively, as 16 of Brooklyn’s 30 first-quarter points were in the paint.
Toronto finished the frame strong, however. A pair of Scottie Barnes buckets, plus triples from Ja’Kobe Walter and Jamison Battle off the bench, helped Toronto end the opening quarter on a 7-0 run, but still trailed Brooklyn 30-28.
The second quarter opened with Barnes and Mississauga, Ont., native RJ Barrett converting on hoop and harm’s, allowing Toronto to grab its first lead of the game with the run extended to 13-0. The Nets responded with back-to-back 3-pointers, but a pair of Gradey Dick baskets at the rim kept the teams even.
The point of attack defence and transition game that we all know and love from the Raptors started shining through in the second quarter, helping Canada’s team get all the way out to a nine-point lead in the middle of the quarter.
The final five minutes were inefficient for both teams, as only five buckets were made combined by the pair. Ultimately, Ingram and Barnes combined for 17 points in the quarter as Toronto maintained its lead and took a 60-52 advantage into the locker room at the break.
The first five minutes of the third quarter were even at 12 points apiece; however, the Raptors got into some foul trouble. The Nets headed into the bonus with 7:38 remaining in the frame, which helped the team get out to a 7-0 run.
The Nets just kept battling, as Demin, Claxton, and company cut the Raptors’ lead to five with 2:30 minutes left in the third frame. It would be all Raptors to end the quarter, however. A Jamal Shead floater to beat the buzzer capped off a 6-0 run as Toronto led Brooklyn 89-81 heading into the fourth.
Two Jalen Wilson 3-pointers for the Nets quickly got it back to within reach to begin the final frame, however, before a Quickley long bomb — the first make in the last 14 attempts for the Raptors — calmed things down.
A 9-2 run extended the Raptors’ lead back up to 12, but the Nets kept draining outside shots to hang around. Ultimately, Toronto’s largest lead of the game came in the final three minutes, as Quickley and the rest of the Raptors’ starters, including Jakob Poeltl — who returned in this one after missing the last game — were able to close out the Nets in the Barclays Center.
Toronto continues its five-game road trip with game four against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday, before wrapping up the trip in Indiana to take on former Raptor Pascal Siakam and the Pacers on Saturday.
