the Raptors have an opportunity to spoil the party
(SportsNetwork.com) - The Toronto Raptors will look to clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2008 when they host the Boston Celtics tonight at the Air Canada Centre in the back end of a home and home. After picking up a rare win in Boston, the Toronto Raptors will be back on familiar ground when they host the Celtics Friday from Air Canada Centre. Terrence Ross led the Raptors with 24 points in a 99-90 triumph, while Kyle Lowry continued his recent tear with 23 and nine rebounds. DeMar DeRozan rounded out the 20-point scorers with exactly that many and Jonas Valanciunas ended with 15 points and 14 rebounds for Toronto, which has alternated results in the last six games. The Raptors broke an 11-game losing streak in Boston, last winning there on Jan. 23, 2008. \"That was a character test for us,\" said Toronto head coach Dwane Casey. \"I think this team has a lot of character. Situations were not there yet, but again its not from a lack of fight and togetherness.\" Casey needs three wins to reach 100 victories with the team. The Raptors last posted 40 total wins in a season in 2009-10 (40-42) and the fastest team to reach 40 wins was the 1999-00 squad after 70 games. The current unit needed 71 games to reach the mark. Lowry has scored 19 or more points in each of the last 11 games, averaging 22.5 points in that span. DeRozan is averaging more than 20 points per game against Atlantic Division foes. Toronto leads the division by 2 1/2 games ahead of Brooklyn and is even with Chicago for the third spot in the Eastern Conference. Toronto is 21-14 north of the border this season. Boston has lost two in a row and nine of its last 12 games, and was paced by Jared Sullingers 26 points (19 in fourth quarter) and eight rebounds on Wednesday. \"Sully (Sullinger) got hot and I thought even though we were really undersized we played pretty well in that time,\" said Boston head coach Brad Stevens. Avery Bradley had 16 points, Rajon Rondo chipped in nine and 15 assists and Chris Johnson added 13 points off the bench. The Celtics shot 41 percent from the floor and had a 51-7 advantage from their reserves. The Celtics will try to stop an eight-game road losing streak in Toronto and have an 8-26 mark as the visitor. Their previous road win was Feb. 10 against the Milwaukee Bucks. Celtics forward Jeff Green had six points in 20 minutes on Wednesday and is bothered by a stiff neck. Green hopes to play against the Raptors. Rondo needed stitches to close a cut on his forehead and returned to the game to cover Raptors All-Star DeRozan. \"I think it obviously says a lot. He wants to play and not only, I think the most important part about it is he came back in and guarded DeRozan (DeMar),\" Celtics coach Brad Stevens said of Rondo. \"He went after it and I thought he did a pretty good job on him.\" Toronto is 2-1 against the Celtics this season, but the latter has prevailed in four of the last seven meetings between the teams. Boston has lost two straight, four of five and five of its last seven trips to Canada. Margus Hunt Womens Jersey . The Jets are 1-2-1 against Nashville this year despite outscoring the Predators 11-10. Blake Wheeler and Olli Jokinen lead Winnipeg with four points, while Craig Smith has four for the Predators. Jake Fisher Youth Jersey . The AS Roma star injured his left knee in March, ruling him out of the tournament in Brazil. Van Gaal said Tuesday that \"we do not have another Kevin Strootman in the Netherlands.\" The 62-year-old coach, who is widely expected to be the manager of Manchester United next season, has been experimenting in recent days with a new formation which he says may sound more defensive -- but will be executed according to the \"Dutch school\" of attacking football. http://www.footballbengalsfanatics.com/authentic-mohamed-sanu-bengals-jersey/. Kentucky will play No. 1 Florida in Sundays championship game, creating the attractive matchup of the tournaments two top seeds. Florida beat Tennessee 56-49 in Saturdays first semifinal. Jake Fisher Jersey . LUCIE, Fla. Cedric Ogbuehi Womens Jersey .Y. -- Henrik Lundqvist had his game-day face on at practice.LOS ANGELES - The Raptors will be at the edge of the NBA spotlight Sunday evening, whether they like it or not. Basketball fans around the globe will be watching as Kobe Bryant makes his season debut - 240 days after tearing his left Achilles - against Toronto, a team he has used as his own personal punching bag. Bryant announced his return in a video posted on his Facebook page Friday afternoon and the game, which airs at 9:30pm et on TSN2, will also be picked up by NBA TV in the US. All eyes will be locked on the Lakers future Hall-of-Famer, all except the Raptors coach, who would rather avoid becoming a sideshow in the Bryant circus that is sure to consume Staples Center on Sunday. \"Everybodys going to be watching Kobe come back but Im totally concerned about the Toronto Raptors,\" said Dwane Casey, hoping to put an end to his teams five-game skid. \"No disrespect to Kobe, hes one of our greats in the game, we need him in the game, but for us Im worried about the Toronto Raptors, our physical disposition, our approach, our toughness.\" Whether he cares to admit it, the Lakers did Casey and Torontos coaching staff a favour by making their announcement public Friday rather than keeping Bryants status under wraps until game day. As the home team - with an assist from the NBA - shamelessly builds the hype for Bryants return, the visitors are trying desperately to dodge it. \"Weve got to go out there and play hard regardless, [even] if we werent on TV, if we were just playing in front of five people,\" said California-native DeMar DeRozan after practicing at the Clippers training center in LA Saturday afternoon. A match-up with the struggling Raptors is a fitting return for Bryant, who has torched Toronto throughout his 17-year career. Bryant is averaging 28.3 points in 29 games against the Raptors, his second highest average against any opponent, inflated by his infamous 81-point performance. Bryant has only lost to Toronto at Staples once, back in 2001, and the Raptors havent defeated the Lakers in LA since. Now the question is: How will the 35-year-old fare coming off major surgery, after an eight-month layoff? \"Me, knowing him, he wouldnt come back if he didnt think he could play at a dominant level,\" DeRozan insisted. \"I think its mixed emotion for everybody. Everybodys just eager to see how hell be. Everybody always tries to doubt him in some way and he always seems to prove people wrong.dddddddddddd So its just another test for him, well see how he bounces back.\" Bryant should see limited playing time in his first game back, roughly 20-30 minutes of action per Lakers coach Mike DAntoni. Although working one of the all-time greats back into your lineup isnt a bad problem to have, DAntoni hopes it wont disrupt the chemistry thats been built over the teams first 19 games. \"Theyve been moving the basketball well, [doing] a lot of things [DAntoni was] doing in New York with the same sets, same things he was doing in Phoenix,\" Casey said of the 10-9 Lakers. \"A lot of pick-and-rolls, the ball was humming, moving and I assume theyre going to do the same thing with [Bryant] coming back. We just have to be prepared.\" With Bryant hurt, Steve Nash out of the lineup - hes already been ruled out for Sundays game - and Dwight Howard in Houston, these Lakers have looked more like a vintage DAntoni team than last seasons incarnation ever did. This team has played at the NBAs third quickest pace, making more three-point shots per game than any other in the league. Now how do they integrate Bryant? The Raptors - in full out \"we need to worry about ourselves\"-mode Saturday - are navigating through an identity crisis of their own. Opponents have shot over 45 per cent in each game during their losing streak and have exceeded 100 points in four of the five contests. Their latest defeat, a 106-97 loss in Phoenix Friday, exposed a lack of toughness on both ends of the floor. \"Weve gotten away from that for whatever reason,\" Casey said after his team was out-rebounded 53-36 by the Suns, including an 18-11 disparity on the offensive glass. \"Were not the hit first team that we were.\" To make matters worse, Toronto may be without its most physical player on Sunday after Tyler Hansbrough sprained his left shoulder against the Suns. The Raptors forward underwent an MRI in LA Saturday morning and the team is awaiting the results before determining his status. Playing on the big stage, with the focus surrounding the other team and its best player, the Raptors have an opportunity to spoil the party and prove themselves in front of a large audience. \"Weve got to get out of this slump,\" DeRozan said. \"We understand it doesnt feel good, its a bad feeling and weve got to turn it around.\" Cheap Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China ' ' '