A SOLID VICTORY

The Raptors went into tonight’s game versus the Atlanta Hawks at the ACC with a better defensive game in mind, than the one they produced when beat by the Hawks earlier this November.

That’s exactly how the Raptors played, except for a moment or two in the second quarter, but won the game 93-88. This was the second straight game in which the Raptors have held their opponents to less than 90 points.

Before the game even began, the Raptors were given a scare, as Chris Bosh got stuck in the elevator shaft on his way to the game. He made it to the ACC at around an hour before the seven o’clock tip off.

He wasn’t able to participate in the warm up drills or shoot around, and it showed. Bosh was taking a lot of jumpers that looked awful, and was hardly driving the ball to the basket.

The Raptors did receive scoring help, early in the game too, from Jamario Moon, Jason Kapono and Joey Graham. Since Bosh wasn’t scoring, he turned into a playmaker and had five assists in the first quarter to makeup for his shaky start.

That lifted the Raptors to a 24-21 lead after the first quarter.

They continued to play strong basketball with limited turnovers and excellent defence. During the second quarter the Raptors held a 12 point lead, which vanished, but regained it for a 10 point lead. That too, was erased and for the rest of the half. The Hawks rolled to a 50-46 lead at the break.

The play of Mike Bibby and his perimeter shooting was killing the Raptors as he had 15 points in the first half. The defence did contain Joe Johnson to just five points, and thanks in large part to Anthony Parker who was active defensively.

Chris Bosh had ten points at the half and was working on a triple-double with seven assists and five rebounds.

Like the game versus the Bobcats, the Raptors bench gave the team a huge boost to start the second half. Joey Graham was big again with his performance, and so was Jason Kapono.

Andrea Bargnani had a slow night and finished with just 7 points and 4 rebounds due to foul trouble, and had 4 fouls to start the third quarter.

The Raptors kept pushing for the tie and the lead, but the Hawks always seemed to answer. Toronto did get the lead back, and for good, on a Chris Bosh jumper to make the score 67-65 with two minutes to go in the third quarter.

CB4 once again carried the team, with a 15 point third quarter and ended the game with 30 points, 10 rebounds and finished just three assists shy for his first career triple-double. With his 15 points, Chris Bosh matched the total output by the Hawks and their 15 points in the third quarter. The Raptors won the quarter 23-15.

To start the fourth quarter, the Raptors went on an 8-0 run, and within the first 4 minutes, Joey Graham electrified the crowd with two dunks, and the Raptors defence did the rest.

Joey Graham finished the night with 11 points and 5 rebounds. It is good to see Graham put up back to back solid games, and hopefully this will continue.

Jason Kapono finally hit a three pointer, was 2/4, and finished the night with 16 points, including a sweet no look pass to Bosh for an easy lay-up. That was part of the strong fourth quarter run by the Raptors.

After some weak games, Anthony Parker stepped up on defence and held Joe Johnson to 18 points. Mike Bibby was put on lock with just 9 second half points.

Jose Calderon just wasn’t himself in this game and had just 6 points, and missed some good looks he usually makes. He went 0/4 from three point range, including two wide open looks. His passing game wasn’t affected and dished out 11 assists. During play, he picked up a rebound, but while landing he rolled his left ankle, and his stomach fell onto the ball.

The Hawks did have balanced scoring throughout their lineup, as 4 of 5 starters were in double figures and had five for the game. The Raptors had 4 of their own in double figures. Zaza Pachulia had a monster night on the boards, collecting 17.

The Raptors defence was too much for Atlanta though, and held them to 42% shooting. After allowing the Hawks to hit 6 three pointers in the first half, the Raptors only allowed two in the second half.

For the game, the Raptors protected the ball and committed just nine turnovers, while Atlanta had 15. The Raptors outscored the Hawks 34-24 in the paint. The rebounding edge barely went to Atlanta 44-41, but the Raptors dominated in the second half.

Jermaine O’Neal missed his third straight game with knee and ankle injuries, and is listed as day-to-day. Josh Smith was probable for the game, took part in the warm-up but didn’t dress due to a high ankle sprain.

The Raptors are an even 4-4 at home, and up their overall record to 8-7.

Up next for the Raptors is a three game Western road trip beginning on Sunday November 30th, where they will make stops in Los Angeles to visit the Lakers. Then will head to Denver and face Utah on a national televised game in America (ESPN) and this trip will last six days. The Raptors this season are 4-3 on the road.


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