Raptors 94 – Mavericks 86: just enough
By Brian Boake
Against the low-scoring Mavericks, the Raptors knew a solid defensive effort would be key to a victory. They held the home team in check for a gratifying win.
The Toronto Raptors didn’t display their A game last night in Dallas, but their B game was sufficient. They capped a successful two-game road swing with a 94-86 win over the Mavericks.
Our squad has been piling up wins in spite of falling behind early in games, often by double digits. Not this time; Toronto’s offense was sharp from the tip, and raced out to a 17-4 lead within 4 minutes. However, the Mavs, desperate for a playoff spot, pecked away unceasingly.
The Raptors, shorthanded though they were, never broke. With DeMarre Carroll (back problems) joining Kyle Lowry on the sideline, P.J. Tucker got the start at small forward. While he will have better shooting nights, P.J. set the tone with his usual fierce defense. Our Charles Barkley-lite (so shoot me, that’s who he reminds me of) led the team with 9 rebounds and pressured Harrison Barnes all night. To his credit, Barnes hit some difficult shots and was the game’s top scorer with 23 points.
Finding ways to contribute
And where was Mr. 40 Points DeMar DeRozan? He was double-teamed frequently and pounded always. He responded by dishing the ball, resulting in a team-leading 6 assists. The road to the free-throw line was blocked by the referees, who swallowed their whistles early. Only 1 of his 18 points was earned at the charity stripe. DD was angered many times by the lack of respect, but was never T’ed up. Maybe the zebras knew he had a point?
Patrick Patterson received one. Late in the game, he drained his fourth 3-pointer (on four shots – nicely done!) of the night, then responded to some editorial comments from the Dallas bench with some thoughts of his own. Rick Carlisle, the Mavericks coach, earned an offsetting technical foul for throwing gas on the fire.
Back to the game. The Raptors’ lead grew to 16 in Q2, but this team is seldom satisfied with easy wins. True to form, the offense went chilly, to the tune of 40 second-half points. The Mavericks took advantage of 5 Q4 Toronto turnovers to claw back.
Dallas got within 5 points with 8 minutes to play. Fortunately, Serge Ibaka, who had been sitting due to foul trouble, was reinserted. He drained a pair of mid-range jumpers on consecutive trips. The Mavs got to within 6 points twice more, but the Raptors always responded.
Wrapping it up
Toronto’s defensive effort was stellar, and Dallas didn’t take advantage of the few opportunities they had. Wesley Matthews was a major reason the Mavs were 7 for 28 from beyond the arc. He failed on 7 tries, many of them clean-cut looks.
The Raptors are home to face Terrence Ross and the Orlando Magic on Monday night.
Putbacks: Tucker and Patterson were the only Raptors to play all 12 minutes of Q4…JV started well, but was benched for most of the second half…Delon Wright had 4 turnovers and Norman Powell 3