This was a game fitting of the date on the calender. It was if you have not checked a calender today Friday the 13th. Lots of odd things would occur at the ACC on this night as the Raptors limped in to face the Pacers without Andrea Bargnani. This game was not going to be pretty. How on earth would the Raptors make up for the 22 points that Andrea Bargnani both averages and scored that exact number vs Pacers in the home opener. Demar DeRozan was heading into this one having perhaps the worst stretch of games in his young career. Everything pointed to a Pacers blowout win. But that is not what happened at all.
The Raptor came out like a house on fire. DeRozan was scoring and getting to the line at will. The Raptors at one point had built up a 16 point lead in the first half. It was pretty stunning to say the least. Raptors had come out and dominated the first 27-15 but after peaking at that 16 point lead in the 2nd the Pacers would quickly cut that lead to 8. As part of the Pacers comeback Danny Granger would block Ed Davis who started for Bargnani on the night. Granger would decide to taunt him and get a tech. Which although stupid was not a big deal except he already had a tech early in the game for arguing a call. So Mr. Granger would be sent to the his Bat Cave away from home in the visitors locker room. The Pacers would push on and get the lead down to 5 at the half with the score 45-40.
The Pacers came out of the locker room minus Granger and quickly got the game to within 2 points. The Raptors showed they had some moxie and rebuild there lead to 10. But the Pacers kept coming and the Raptors were struggling to hang on. The battle would be tight all through the 4th quarter and then some terrible mistakes in the final moments would seal the Raptors all to familiar fate. The first mistake came on the second of two Pacer free throws with the game tied at 90. Pacers would make the first but miss the second. But they would end up getting the rebound and be fouled and go back to the line. It would be the 6th for Amir Johnson ending his night with just 9 points and 5 rebounds. So that gave the Pacers a 93-90 lead. Raptors need a 3 now to get this game to overtime. Jamaal Magloire was not going to be the guy to make that three pointer but he was on the floor. In defence of Casey it was likely to rebound a missed three and give the Raptors a second chance to make it. But what happened was inexpiable. The ball would be inbounded to Magloire and he was fouled be it intentionally or by accident, regardless it was a wise move by the Pacers. Hack-A-Canadian is how I referred to it on Twitter. Aside from the obvious that the Raptors could not make a three, Magloire is also terrible at the line. In his career just 64.2 % from the line but has not shot above 60% since 2003-04 season which is the point his career started to nose dive. He would miss both badly at the line. Pacers would follow it up 2 points and seal it up for a 95-90 win. The second win for them in Toronto in the last 30 days.
DeRozan after the hot start would end up with the same 23 points he scored to lead the Raptors in the previous loss to the Pacers. Barbosa continued to be effective off the bench with 20. Calderon also had a decent stat line. In the end the key stat is this game was at the line. Pacers went 32-38 from the charity stripe and the Raptors just 20-32. It was a solid performance from the Raptors on the night. They really deserved to win this game. But in the end they have no one to blame but themselves for why they didn't. Things get no easier as they head to Chicago to take on the Bulls who are currently about to get a win over the Celtics. Bulls will have the best record in the NBA at 11-2 and are a perfect 4-0 at the United Center.
Note: Minor Error on my Part.....DeRozan had 22 in the opener vs the Pacers in opener and Bargnani 21. Sorry about that.
Showing posts with label Danny Granger. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Danny Granger. Show all posts
3/11/11
Pacers get BLURRED!!!
Watching Roy Hibbert play against the Raptors always makes me cry a bit. I am doing a feature on March Madness and talked with him. Asked him how does it feel to return to your former team for 2 weeks. He laughed and said they should have kept me. Jokes aside they really should have. Pacers are still in the playoff hunt in the East. Raptors playoff hunt died some would say when Chris Bosh said he was going to South Beach. But playoffs have been off their radar pretty much the entire season. As Ryan said in preview Raptors have been reduced to spoilers at this point.
James Johnson a quick basket to open the proceeds and he picks up a foul at the other end non-shooting. Former Raptor Roy Hibbert with the answer to tie it at 2. Funny I am doing a feature on March Madness and Tyler Hansbrough who won a title at UNC had back to back baskets but Raptors lead 8-6. Raptors had an early 6 points from James Johnson but a Granger 3 and Paul George bucket and foul which he missed left this puppy tied at 13. Pacers took the lead 15-13 and a time out and DeRozan it would set off a Raptor 10-0 and Pacers now needed the time out trailing 23-15 in first with 3:52 to go. This is not what they wanted to see with Raptors have hope of a win. Raptors would maintain the lead for the most part leading 32-27 after 1. Raptors shot 65% in that opening quarter and yet just up 5 points.
Raptors came out and built on the lead Barbosa had 9 already off the bench for the Raptors and that was the lead as well 38-29. Barbosa was hot as hell a score on break then a wide open 3 and he had 14 and Raptors lead was up two touchdowns. Given the news in NFL today will use some football terminology because they won't be for awhile. The Blur was just that on both defence and offence and it was having a huge impact on this game. The Raptors were benefiting with 43-29 lead and the Pacers needed a time out. Barbosa had hit 5 of his first 6 shots.
A sloppy turnover and Pacers get an easy bucket on the break. Barbosa misses and Hansbrough gets a slam dunk. Barbosa would get back on track and hit a jumper for two but the former UConn stantout A.J Price nailed a 3 pointer and Pacers were showing some fight as they were battling to hang on to the 8th spot in the East. They had trimmed a few points off the Raptors lead and it was 47-36. Reggie Evans battling on the glass gets rebound number 7 of what would be an eventual 8 in the half. 4 offensive and 4 defensive an equal opportunity rebounder and it would that 7th board would lead to a Barbosa bucket giving him 18 points which is what he would end up with for the half. Pacers were getting tagged with a lot off silly offensive fouls the latest of those to Danny Granger and it was not helping the comeback effort. A three from Granger later who help and got Pacers to single digits. That would be short lived as Calderon would find Ed Davis and he made the basket in the paint and got fouled made the and 1 as well and Raptors were up a dozen. They would continue to ride this effort to the half and lead 62-48 at the break.
The third quarter as it would turn out would be the worst of the night for the Raptors. After scoring 32 and 30 in first two quarters points would be harder to come by in the 3rd. James Johnson after a perfect 6-6 in the first half and 13 points would not score a point in the the 2nd half or take a shot. But Jay Triano said after the game it was more important that he kept Danny Granger under control. which he would do a good job of in 2nd half as Granger had just 11. Despite the good 3rd quarter for the Pacers they only manged to take 4 points off the lead and Raptors took a 83-73 advantage to the 4th quarter.
The Raptors and Pacers would play the 4th quarter to a stalemate. The Raptors after being in an almost identically position as they were against Utah with a 14 point lead with about 7 minutes to play. This time the Raptors would stop the bleeding quickly after a little slippage Triano called a time out and it got the Raptors back on track. There may not have been drama in the outcome the rest of the way after that. But there was in the final moments. Darren Collison earlier in the year had nailed a 3 point shoot late in a game when Pacers could have just dribbled it out for a win. Raptors remembered that and Leandro Barbosa remembered that as did the Raptors. Barbosa would take a chance to score late creating some ill will with a frustrated Pacers club that is free falling out of the playoffs with their 6th straight loss losing to the Raptors 108-98.
Danny Granger was not a happy man and basically said he would have done ill will to Barbosa had he not feared being suspended. But a Raptor never forgets I guess is the lesson of this story. It was a good night for one of the DNB's Favourites in Reggie Evans with 16 boards. He gave his take on this whole thing post game. You can find Barbosa's thought on it on Raptors.com and my bald head in James Johnson's post game scrum. Here is Reggie's thoughts on end of the game and his own performance, some praise for Ed Davis as well.
That is a wrap on this one. Had interviews with T.J Ford talking about Canada's big 3 ballers in Thompson, Joesph and Kabongo on the way. Also first chance to talk with Demar DeRozan since his whole all-star experience and a nice performance in England. Look for those in the coming days. Up next for the Raptors is the Bobcats who are chasing the Pacers something they might want have kept in mind before talking smack about the Raptors.
James Johnson a quick basket to open the proceeds and he picks up a foul at the other end non-shooting. Former Raptor Roy Hibbert with the answer to tie it at 2. Funny I am doing a feature on March Madness and Tyler Hansbrough who won a title at UNC had back to back baskets but Raptors lead 8-6. Raptors had an early 6 points from James Johnson but a Granger 3 and Paul George bucket and foul which he missed left this puppy tied at 13. Pacers took the lead 15-13 and a time out and DeRozan it would set off a Raptor 10-0 and Pacers now needed the time out trailing 23-15 in first with 3:52 to go. This is not what they wanted to see with Raptors have hope of a win. Raptors would maintain the lead for the most part leading 32-27 after 1. Raptors shot 65% in that opening quarter and yet just up 5 points.
Raptors came out and built on the lead Barbosa had 9 already off the bench for the Raptors and that was the lead as well 38-29. Barbosa was hot as hell a score on break then a wide open 3 and he had 14 and Raptors lead was up two touchdowns. Given the news in NFL today will use some football terminology because they won't be for awhile. The Blur was just that on both defence and offence and it was having a huge impact on this game. The Raptors were benefiting with 43-29 lead and the Pacers needed a time out. Barbosa had hit 5 of his first 6 shots.
A sloppy turnover and Pacers get an easy bucket on the break. Barbosa misses and Hansbrough gets a slam dunk. Barbosa would get back on track and hit a jumper for two but the former UConn stantout A.J Price nailed a 3 pointer and Pacers were showing some fight as they were battling to hang on to the 8th spot in the East. They had trimmed a few points off the Raptors lead and it was 47-36. Reggie Evans battling on the glass gets rebound number 7 of what would be an eventual 8 in the half. 4 offensive and 4 defensive an equal opportunity rebounder and it would that 7th board would lead to a Barbosa bucket giving him 18 points which is what he would end up with for the half. Pacers were getting tagged with a lot off silly offensive fouls the latest of those to Danny Granger and it was not helping the comeback effort. A three from Granger later who help and got Pacers to single digits. That would be short lived as Calderon would find Ed Davis and he made the basket in the paint and got fouled made the and 1 as well and Raptors were up a dozen. They would continue to ride this effort to the half and lead 62-48 at the break.
The third quarter as it would turn out would be the worst of the night for the Raptors. After scoring 32 and 30 in first two quarters points would be harder to come by in the 3rd. James Johnson after a perfect 6-6 in the first half and 13 points would not score a point in the the 2nd half or take a shot. But Jay Triano said after the game it was more important that he kept Danny Granger under control. which he would do a good job of in 2nd half as Granger had just 11. Despite the good 3rd quarter for the Pacers they only manged to take 4 points off the lead and Raptors took a 83-73 advantage to the 4th quarter.
The Raptors and Pacers would play the 4th quarter to a stalemate. The Raptors after being in an almost identically position as they were against Utah with a 14 point lead with about 7 minutes to play. This time the Raptors would stop the bleeding quickly after a little slippage Triano called a time out and it got the Raptors back on track. There may not have been drama in the outcome the rest of the way after that. But there was in the final moments. Darren Collison earlier in the year had nailed a 3 point shoot late in a game when Pacers could have just dribbled it out for a win. Raptors remembered that and Leandro Barbosa remembered that as did the Raptors. Barbosa would take a chance to score late creating some ill will with a frustrated Pacers club that is free falling out of the playoffs with their 6th straight loss losing to the Raptors 108-98.
Danny Granger was not a happy man and basically said he would have done ill will to Barbosa had he not feared being suspended. But a Raptor never forgets I guess is the lesson of this story. It was a good night for one of the DNB's Favourites in Reggie Evans with 16 boards. He gave his take on this whole thing post game. You can find Barbosa's thought on it on Raptors.com and my bald head in James Johnson's post game scrum. Here is Reggie's thoughts on end of the game and his own performance, some praise for Ed Davis as well.
That is a wrap on this one. Had interviews with T.J Ford talking about Canada's big 3 ballers in Thompson, Joesph and Kabongo on the way. Also first chance to talk with Demar DeRozan since his whole all-star experience and a nice performance in England. Look for those in the coming days. Up next for the Raptors is the Bobcats who are chasing the Pacers something they might want have kept in mind before talking smack about the Raptors.
12/6/10
Raps Give Up A Blizard Of 3's In Indiana
Raptors on the road for a 2nd half of a back to back and are coming off a pretty terrible performance against the Knicks. The Pacers are returning from a visit out west and they have lost the last 2 on that trip. Still at .500 though and maybe one of the early surprises of this NBA season. The Raptors are a bit of a surprise as well at 8-12 they were predicted by many to be one of the worst teams in the NBA. But they have been better than that and even have people considering the playoffs could be possible. Both the Pacers and Raptors have been spectators for the playoffs the past few seasons. One team will take a small step towards towards that goal tonight.
1st Quarter
Both teams struggle to find the hoop early. Collison got a break away score and Amir answered to make it 2-2 but it took a 1:40 to get points on the board. I mentioned in the preview Danny Granger can make 3's and he hits one here to make the game 11-6 Pacers early. But buckets by Calderon and Amir cut the lead down to just 1. But a Pacers 7-0 run capped off by a Rush three pointer would make it 18-10. Another Granger three ball and the perimeter defence is once again brutal at least early on. Pacers have built a 25-15 lead with 2:35 to play in 1st. Pacers were shooting 50% and Raps were giving up many open looks. T.J Ford was going get some extra playing time as Collison picked up 2 fouls. But Pacers were not slowing down as they had a 31-18 lead after 1.
2nd Quarter
A James Poesy open look at three off a Raptor turnover....It is raining 3's in Indiana as Dunleavy nails another 3. Just brutal effort on defence and Rush hits another 3. Jay Triano calls a time out with the score 42-21....Little Late Jay. A Barbosa 3 was like a bee bee gun going up against a machine gun at this point. Pacers were 9-13 from beyond the arc and this was getting embrassing with the score 51-29. It just wasn't getting much better. Raptors may well have lost this game already they have dug a huge hole for themselves to dig out of to the tune of 60-37. A Calderon 3 would make the lead 20. Pacers have 62 points with still 2 minutes to play. Remember what the Raptors did to the Wizards...this was the same with Raps playing the role of the Wizards. Bargnani got his first made FG with less then a minute to play in the half. Raptors were getting spanked to the tune of 68-44 at the half.
3rd Quarter
Going through the motions might be the best way to describe the Raptors effort coming out for the 2nd half. Pacers were a team that looked desperate to win and it was showing in all aspects of this game. Pacer were maintaining a 24 point advantage with the score 78-54 with 6 to play. Roy Hibbert slam made me shed a tear. He is going to be a solid big man in this league for the next 10 years barring injuries and he could have been our guy. Pacers were not playing as well had some turnovers but the Raptors were not cashing in on them but they had cut the lead to 16 on an Ed Davis bucket. Love the way this kid hits the offensive glass. Raptors still down big 78-62 but Pacers call a time out before it gets out of hand. Raptors did get a 10-1 run thrown together but even with that they were still down 15. But Pacers made their own push back run capped off with a Posey 3-ball. It was a 22 point lead heading to the 4th. 89-67 for the Pacers.
4th Quarter.
Really not a lot to say by this point the Raptor mad some small dents into the enormous lead but 102-81 with 6:43 to go it seems clear this one was done...In fact it was very clear a lot sooner than that. Brandon Rush was 6/8 from 3 point range and I believe Danielle mentioned him in Behind Enemy Lines. A good call by her. As for the Raptors nothing good about this night and they lose in huge way 124-100 as a team the Pacers were 13/26 from behind the arc.
Raptors heading into this season I had stated that the Raptors had to have effort to beat anyone in this league. The level of talent makes it a requirement. When the effort is not there you get nights like tonight. The Raptors showed little to no effort on defence and it made keeping pace on offence was next to impossible.
Raptors Visit The New and Improved Pacers.
The Pacers are a .500 basketball team which might be a surprise to a lot of folks. They made some changes in the off-season and it seems to at least early worked out. They also have former Raptor for about a couple weeks in Roy Hibbert. I was a huge fan of Roy Hibbert and actually endorsed the Raptors drafting him. They did of course draft him but were picking for the Pacers as part of the ill-fated J.O trade that saw T.J Ford and Hibbert go the other way along with Rasho Nesterovic. I don't think anyone would realize perhaps the worst part of that trade was Hibbert going to the Pacers. Nathan Jawai the 2nd round pick the Raptors got in the deal is no longer in the league. While Roy was become one of the better young centers in the league. The Georgetown product is averaging 15.6 points per game and 8.8 rebounds along with 3 assists at the Center position. In his third year in the NBA he has improved his numbers ever year just like he did at Georgetown. As you watch the Raptors and Pacers tonight you might be like me and wonder what might have been.
The Basics: Pacers 9-9 (4-5 at Home) Raptors 8-12 (2-7 on Road)
When Last We Saw Them: Raptors defence was getting taken to school in a major way. It was a disappointing start and it never really got much better the rest of the day. The closest the Raptors would get was to within 5 points of the Knicks only to watch them pull back away. Great efforts from Amir Johnson and Jerryd Bayless were wasted. The Raptors looked like the road team that stayed out way to late and could not answer the bell.
Key Match-ups: Danny Granger will likely match-up with Sonny Weems who was not great vs New York and draws a tougher assignment today against Granger. Some Raptor fans wanted to take Danny Granger back in the day instead of Joey Graham. Retrospect is a beautiful thing isn't it. At the time knee concerns made a lot of teams back away from Granger as a result. While he has had his share of injuries he has become the leader of this Pacers club. While Graham is now on his 3rd NBA team. Granger can take and make the 3 if you do not respect him shooting 39.3% from 3 on the season. The biggest piece the Pacers added in the off-season was Darren Collison acquired in a 4 team deal in the off-season. In 15 games with the Pacers his scoring and 3 point % is up slightly and his FG% and assists have taken a slight dip in comparison to his numbers in New Orleans. Jose Calderon was ill prior to the game yesterday vs New York. Not sure how he is feeling today but he has a tough match-up to deal with in Collison. Oh yeah T.J Ford is still a Pacer as well and if those two hook up it will be on. Finally we mentioned him off the top Roy Hibbert is a force to be dealt with. If the Raptors stick Bargnani on him that could be ugly. If they don't and use Amir that would be a big size advantage for Roy. On the offensive side of things, Bargnani should have no problems with Hibbert if he takes him away from the basket. Unless the Pacers decide to try what New York did, with an unconventional match-up against him.
Other Things of Note: The Raptors are 7-21 in Indiana all time and have lost 4 straight @ Indiana. The last win came in February of 2008. Pacers average 6.7 blocks per game in comparison to the Raptors just 3.2. The Raptors average 12.6 offensive rebounds per game on the season. You are saying but wait a second that was with Reggie Evans in there. But in the 4 games since Raptors have averaged 12 rebounds on the offensive glass including 14 in the loss to the Knicks. Pacers average just under 10 with 9.8 rebounds on the offensive glass. Pacers are returning home from a trip out west in which they dropped the last 2 games of the trip to the Jazz and Suns. How you start is important if your the Raptors. If they lead after opening quarter they are 5-1 and when they trail after 1 they are 3-11.
1/31/10
Battle is On For DNB & The Raptors
The Battle has begun for the Dino Blogger in the Pro vs Joes contest on Whotheman.com. I am debating in favour of Jarrett Jack remaining as the starting point guard. I know this will shock no one. But he has been good you have to admit. So please if you can go check it out and vote for me that would be great. Help me make it all the way to finals. You may have to register on the site to vote but please take the time to do so and support myself and the Dino Nation Blog in the process. That also lead to a nice transition to today's game where Jack takes on his former team in the Indiana Pacers.
The Pacers and Raptors have split a pair of games this season. I was in the house covering the game when the Raptors won 123-112 in November. Danny Granger had 36 points in that loss. Jack was on fire and was perfect from the field coming of the bench at the time scoring 18 and Calderon was good as well with 21 as the stater. CB4 had an awful shooting night going 5-19 from the field and had 16 points and 12 boards. But the Raptors walked away with the win despite that.
Earlier this month the Raptors would travel to Indy and not be so lucky. Bosh was better with 27 points but the team around him was not. The Pacers meanwhile has a full team effort and had 6 players in double digits on the score sheet and it was enough to hold off the Raptors 105-101. Granger in that game lead the Pacers with 23. This hopefully will serve as a reminder to not take the Pacers lightly as Toronto will face them in the next 2 games starting with an early evening tilt with Pacers at the ACC tonight and travel to Indy for the re-match on Tuesday.
It has been a tough season overall for the Pacers. T.J Ford has fallen out of favour and can't get minutes behind Watson and rookie Guard from UConn A.J Price. Who in that game earlier this month Price had 16 and was one of those 6 players in double digits. In Addition Danny Granger has not looked like the franchise guy that Indy was hoping he was on the path to becoming. The one positive in Indy is Roy Hibbert who came to them via the J.O deal with the Raps. Hibbert the former Hoyas standout is doing the school's legacy of big men in the NBA proud and has really started to crank it up in his second season in the NBA
The Raptors have been lights out at home of late but have failed to answer the bell for the opening quarter in the past couple. Indy can shoot the 3 ball and Raptors will need to have solid perimeter defense if they hope not to have a mis-step on their home floor. No word on if Demar suits up today and Andrea Bargnani has been has some issues as well. However even if the Raptors were short handed today there would be no acceptable excuse to dropping another game to the Pacers.
In fact when you look towards the sked heading into the All-Star Break Raps have many of those "winnable" games in front of them. However if they do not start coming out and falling behind the odds eventually are going to catch up with them. No one loves a good rally more than the Dino Blogger but for my personal sanity and that of the Raptors fans like you that I care about, I think we can agree we can do with out the drama.
Raptor if they can do what you would expect and beat the Pacers twice that would put them 5 games over .500 and facing the 4-41 Nets on Wednesday. Raptors can really start to make some distance from .500 and the back in the East. Miami lost last night and the Bobcats were winners. Oh and coming from around the outside and passing the Heat is Chuck Swirsky and the Chicago Bulls. Raptors enter today just 1/2 game in front of Charlotte and a full game in front of Miami and Chicago.
So the margin for error for the Raptors is slim at the moment. Lose a couple you are suppose to win and you could be in 8th from 5th in the blink of an eye...Just ask the Heat.
The Pacers and Raptors have split a pair of games this season. I was in the house covering the game when the Raptors won 123-112 in November. Danny Granger had 36 points in that loss. Jack was on fire and was perfect from the field coming of the bench at the time scoring 18 and Calderon was good as well with 21 as the stater. CB4 had an awful shooting night going 5-19 from the field and had 16 points and 12 boards. But the Raptors walked away with the win despite that.
Earlier this month the Raptors would travel to Indy and not be so lucky. Bosh was better with 27 points but the team around him was not. The Pacers meanwhile has a full team effort and had 6 players in double digits on the score sheet and it was enough to hold off the Raptors 105-101. Granger in that game lead the Pacers with 23. This hopefully will serve as a reminder to not take the Pacers lightly as Toronto will face them in the next 2 games starting with an early evening tilt with Pacers at the ACC tonight and travel to Indy for the re-match on Tuesday.
It has been a tough season overall for the Pacers. T.J Ford has fallen out of favour and can't get minutes behind Watson and rookie Guard from UConn A.J Price. Who in that game earlier this month Price had 16 and was one of those 6 players in double digits. In Addition Danny Granger has not looked like the franchise guy that Indy was hoping he was on the path to becoming. The one positive in Indy is Roy Hibbert who came to them via the J.O deal with the Raps. Hibbert the former Hoyas standout is doing the school's legacy of big men in the NBA proud and has really started to crank it up in his second season in the NBA
The Raptors have been lights out at home of late but have failed to answer the bell for the opening quarter in the past couple. Indy can shoot the 3 ball and Raptors will need to have solid perimeter defense if they hope not to have a mis-step on their home floor. No word on if Demar suits up today and Andrea Bargnani has been has some issues as well. However even if the Raptors were short handed today there would be no acceptable excuse to dropping another game to the Pacers.
In fact when you look towards the sked heading into the All-Star Break Raps have many of those "winnable" games in front of them. However if they do not start coming out and falling behind the odds eventually are going to catch up with them. No one loves a good rally more than the Dino Blogger but for my personal sanity and that of the Raptors fans like you that I care about, I think we can agree we can do with out the drama.
Raptor if they can do what you would expect and beat the Pacers twice that would put them 5 games over .500 and facing the 4-41 Nets on Wednesday. Raptors can really start to make some distance from .500 and the back in the East. Miami lost last night and the Bobcats were winners. Oh and coming from around the outside and passing the Heat is Chuck Swirsky and the Chicago Bulls. Raptors enter today just 1/2 game in front of Charlotte and a full game in front of Miami and Chicago.
So the margin for error for the Raptors is slim at the moment. Lose a couple you are suppose to win and you could be in 8th from 5th in the blink of an eye...Just ask the Heat.
3/15/09
Raptors Rewind- Ford Return Take 2
If it was said that the Pacers would still be in the playoff hunt and the Raptors would not be at this point most would have laughed at the start of the season. However that is the reality of things. Not that the Pacers have a very good shot at the playoffs. They sit in 13th place just one spot ahead of the Raptors but only 2 games out of the final playoff spot in the East. A terrible road record has held the Pacers back with only 9 wins on the road. They have already lost in Toronto. A game that T.J struggled in and he admitted that the fact Sam Mitchell had been fired impacted on him and took some motivation away from him. Jose Calderon became the all time leader in assists for the Raptor Franchise. That being said T.J Ford has had a better season than Jose Calderon. When you consider the direction this team has gone you have to wonder why Ford had to go. In a running style system give me Ford as my point guard. Not to mention that the Raptors have lost 7 straight heading into this Sunday afternoon tilt with the Pacers. In happier more optimistic times, I had targeted this point of schedule as a chance for the Raptors to make up ground. It seemed reasonable the Raptors could have gone 12-3 down the stretch. Games against the Magic, Hawks and Sixers were games the Raptors would have been hard pressed to win. Now you wonder if they can even snap this losing streak against the Pacers and then a back to back with the Bobcats. Charlotte actually has been making a playoff push of their own and has been one of the hotter teams in the East of late. Well they were, 3 straight losses after a 5 or 6 game winning streak. The one thing I can say for sure is a view more people respect T.J Ford more than the last time he rolled through Toronto. That does make me feel good as someone that is a fan of T.J. However there is nothing that can make me feel that good considering the season this has been. I have kind of taken it easy this weekend because what more can you say about this team that has not already been said by everyone at this point. We all expected far much more, a win or loss today will not change that fact. Another fact is that a month from today this Raptor Season will be over far sooner than anyone might have expected when this started in late October.
Late word that Danny Granger will be active today for the Pacers. That will make the task a tougher one for the Raptors indeed. Oh and joy the Raptors are busting out those ugly green uniforms. Also after battling with the flu over last couple games Andrea Bargnani will be in the starting line-up.
1st Quarter
Raps win the tip and off we go. Bosh missed a fading jumper. Indiana failed to score on it's first possession as well. Bargnani missed on an easy lay up. Both teams were of to an awful start. A steal and score for T.J Ford and Calderon matches with a jumper on the other end. Pacers would get back to back baskets. Daniels would turn it over and AP would get the easy score in transition. Pacers would get another Ford bucket. This one would be answered by Bargnani. Murphy and Bosh would exchange baskets. Ford would miss a 3 pointer but later hit a fading shot in the lane. Pacers lead 12-8 at the mid point of the first quarter. Bargnani would get a score in the paint. He would get another basket on a Calderon feed in transition. Make it 3 in a row for Bargnani and Raptors take the lead 14-12.
Dainels would answer and tie it up for the Pacers. He would make it back to back baskets and Pacers were up 2. Anthony Parker would make a jumper and it was all tied at 16. Ford had 6 points and Calderon had 4 dimes. A terrible stretch of misses for the Raps as both Bosh and Graham had several chances to score and could not. Pacer make them pay with a 3 ball. Pops Mensah-Bonsu checks in and he impacts the game right a way with a jam for 2. Pops in a bright light in an otherwise dark time for the Raptors. There are not many people I can honestly endorse to return to this team who has a contract due this off-season, but Pops in one that I can say that I hope he returns next year. Rush makes a 3 pointer after a time out for the Pacers. Jarrett Jack the former teammate of Chris Bosh at Georgia Tech scores and Pacers lead 24-18. Danny Granger had checked in off the bench and missed his first. Raptors get back to back baskets from Calderon and Kapono and the lead was cut to 24-22. Kapono would score again and it was tied at 24. In a forgettable season for Kapono one of his best games of the season was against these Pacers on the ACC floor. I was in the house for that one and JK was very good on that night. Granger draws the foul and can give the Pacers the lead back which he would making both at the line. Calderon tried to shoot it or was it a pass to Pops Mensah-Bonsu? Regardless it did not work and the Pacer would lead 26-24 after 1 at the ACC.
2nd Quarter
Not one 3 point attempt for the Raptors in the first that is odd. Both teams shooting 44% and it was a close contest so far. The second quarter starts with a Granger charge drawn by Pops. Bosh was struggling and had a shot blocked but Pops Mensah-Bonsu would clean it up with a basket. The Pacers would answer and go back up 2 points. A.P draws a foul and makes both at the line. Danny Granger would get going with a basket. Sloppy play by both teams and several turnovers. Pops Mensah-Bonsu would go up strong and draw a foul. He would make both foul shots and we were tied at 30. Granger was getting his legs back after significant time off the floor. He made another basket and pushed the Pacers back in front by 2. Meanwhile the Raptors All Star CB4 was struggling going 1-8 on the day and not able to find anything that would work for him at this point.
Danny Granger was showing no rust as her nailed a 3 pointer. Raptors would answer with a 2 point effort. Andrea Bargnani would follow that up with a 3 pointer and we were tied at 35. Jack would match that 3 ball with one for the Pacers. His Georgia Tech mate CB4 would draw a foul and head to the line. Making a pair and he had only 6 points so far for the Raptors. The struggles would continue with a missed jumper and Troy Murphy would make the Raptors pay with back to back 3's. Pacers stormed out in front 44-37. Raptors offense looked a mess and they would fumble and bumble there way to another turnover. Daniels would draw a foul on Shawn Marion who also was having a very poor effort thus far. Daniels would make a pair at the line.
Illegal defense call and Calderon would make the tech and make a jumper on the possession that would follow. After some free throws from Jack and Bosh it would be Jose Calderon making a jumper and he would pull the Raptors to down 5 with the score 47-42. Calderon having a good first half with 8 points 7 assists and 2 steals. However that being said the Pacers were leading. Chris Bosh looking to get back on track would get a dunk off a Kapono feed. The Pacers were letting the lead they build slip away. Bargnani would draw a foul on Danny Granger and look to cut the lead more. He would make both and Pacers lead was just 47-46. Jack was fouled and split a pair from the line. Bargnani would be fouled and at the line again missed both though and Raptors remained down two. Pacer fail to take advantage and Bargnani would make them pay with a 3 ball to put the Raptors in front. Brandon Rush would put up a 3 pointer and miss. In some ways watching the Pacers is like looking in a mirror to how the Raptors can play offensively. Calderon would be fouled and make a pair at the line. Bosh continued to fight through a tough day missing a easy one inside but got his own rebound and through that one down. Ford on the other end would break a Pacer offensive drought. Ford had a chance to tie the score at the half with a 3 point attempt off a Raptors turnover but it would not fall. Raptors lead 53-50 at the half.
At The Half
The Ford and Calderon battle. Calderon 10 points, 8 assists and 2 steals, Ford 8 points, 5 assists and a steal. Calderon when asked about the battle between the two players he down played it and praised Ford. Something tells me if the question had been asked of Ford you would get a different answer. I do agree there is not a personal dislike between the two but let's face it this is a match-up that will be focused on for years to come. But beyond that battle Andrea Bargnani and Troy Murphy were having a mice contest of their own with Bargnani with 16 and Murphy with 14. The other story of the half was the Raptors has a slim lead despite Bosh being a 4-13 shooting effort with 11 points. He was active on the glass with 8 rebounds. Given the way the Raptors have played of late it is anybodies guess if they can hang on to this lead. If the Pacers have any real chance at the post season this is a game they must have.
3rd Quarter
Raptor lead is 3. Well it was as Jack opens the half with a 3 ball. Jose Calderon would answer with a 3 of his own to restore the Raptors 3 point lead. Shawn Marion would get a score plus a foul and Raptors after the Marion make would have a 6 point lead. That was Marion's first points of the afternoon. Jack would miss a open look in the corner for 3. Ford would miss on a leaner but would find the ball back in his hands and make a shot in the lane. Raptors had a quick answer for that with an Anthony Parker score the other way. Pacers a turnover and they now looked like an offense with no direction. 3's were flying all over the ACC but not many were falling. Jack and Calderon the latest to miss from the arc. Foster and Bargnani would both score on the inside. Ford would make another score. But Bargnani would find a mismatch against Ford and hit a 3 pointer with Ford on him not able to do much. Raptors had a 66-59 lead. Pacers would look to go inside and that would lead to getting to the line. They would hit 4 free throws and cut lead down. But Raptors would be energized by Shawn Marion in transition with a great jam plus a foul. Raptors had an 8 point lead with score 71-63. Calderon would hook Marion on an alley opp and it was converted. Raptors had a 10 point lead with score 73-63.
Give the Raptors credit for the effort and energy. As for the Pacers if this is how they respond to a mush win game like this for them, they will be accepting that they are going to have a seat in the NBA Lottery with the Raptors. Marion with 8 points in the quarter after 0 in the first 2. A Bargnani block and Marion could no convert on the transition chance for Marion. Ford would score and get fouled and make it. That gave Ford 15 on the afternoon. Bargnani would get fouled and make a pair at the line. Yet another Pacer turnover and Shawn Marion would draw the foul on the transition break. He made both at the line and the Raptors lead 77-66. Danny Granger had cooled off and he was short on a jumper. Indiana was giving the Raptors chances and they were taking advantage of a lot of them. Bargnani got the offensive rebound off a Kapono miss and slammed it back home. Raptors leading by 13 now with the score 79-66. Could the losing streak be coming to an end? It sure seemed like it at this point. The Pacers looked awful and the Raptors were looking the best they have in a very long time. Calderon after 2 of his worst efforts of the season has had 2 of his best. While Bargnani has 25 points and I now truly am a believer in Andrea Bargnani. He has just been to good for to long to doubt him any longer. Raptors run was on going as they would keep adding to it. Raptors lead 83-66. Travis Diener would finally get a basket for the Pacers. Calderon would check out with 15 points and 12 assists. Raptors lead was 18, make it 20 as Bosh would go inside and score. Raptors lead 88-68 and you have to ask yourself what the heck is going on here on both sides. Roko Ukic would close out a quarter that saw the Raptors out score the Pacers 37-19 with a drive and score. Raptors lead 90-69.
4th Quarter
Raptors were shooting 50% and the Pacers just 39%. If you are thinking it is the green uniforms the Raptors lost the only other game they played in green. That feature a T.J Ford meltdown that saw him ejected. On this afternoon Ford had to feel dejected as he was one of few Pacers that decided to show up today. Pops Mensah-Bonsu had an alley opp jam and this game was going to be a win. Raptors leading 94-71 and there was no way they were going to lose this one. Seriously if they did I think the Raptor Rewind would just be put in moth balls for the year. But I am not expecting to have to do that.
Travis Diener hits a 3 pointer and maybe makes you worry just a little. But Pops would answer with a dunk a career high 13 so far for him. Pops averaged over 20 in the D-League so he can put the ball in the basket. He was the main contributor off the bench toady. Pops took a shot from Roy Hibbert and would had to his career high at the line. He would not be done by a long shot with a jam plus a foul that would deliver the pizza. Raptors lead was 100-76 and Pacers were melting down before our eyes. Pops got a well deserved standing ovation from the crowd. A steal and an A.P jam. Everyone for once was happy at the ACC. I think everyone from players to management to Dino Bloggers all needed a game like this. Does it change anything as far as this season? No but that being said just as being human the toll of losing can be a lot to endure. At least if for just one Sunday there can be some reason to smile about the Raptors. It is going to be a very happy flight to Charlotte for the Raptors. It will be interesting to see if they can carry this momentum over to a rare Monday night affair with the Bobcats. The Raptors had still 5:32 left to enjoy this one as they led 104-76. The Pops show marched on and so did the Raptors. Pops had 21 points and Raptors had a 110-84 lead. A rare event at the ACC this year as the fans would offer a standing ovation down the stretch. It would be a 110-87 final.
The Ford and Calderon battle both had 15 points but Calderon had 12 assists to Ford's 6 and 2 steals as opposed to 1 steal. That being said even the 27 points and 9 rebounds of Andrea Bargnani took a back seat today to Pops Mensah-Bonsu. Seriously can Bryan Colangelo avoid not re-signed this guy? He is part of whatever solution that Colangelo is going to have for this basketball team going forward. He almost has to be at this point. The JYD of the Y2K is bringing a dawg pound back to the ACC. Somewhere Jerome Williams in barking his approval. Here is the boxscore of a very excellent Raptor victory and you have not been able to say that many times this season at all.
Raps/Pacers Boxscore
So in a season with few moments to celebrate enjoy this one Raptor Fans we have all earned it.
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