DeRozan matched a playoff high with 34 points, Lowry had 25 and the Raptors beat the Miami Heat 99-91 on Wednesday night to take a 3-2 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals. He will be tasked to guard Wade once again, and hopefully, he does a better job than he did in game 4. DeRozan drew a foul and made good on his first two free throws – something that used to be a given for the Toronto all-star but had dropped off in the playoffs.
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Toronto led by 20 in the first half and by 13 to start the fourth quarter before its lead shrunk to 88-87 when Wade made a pair of free throws with 1:54 left. His step-back 3 with 52 seconds to go gave the Raptors a comfortable 6-point margin.
The Raptors stuck to that game plan in the second half, keeping Biyombo on the floor even as the Heat went long stretches without playing a traditional big man. Miami cut Toronto’s lead to one with less than a minute left, and that’s when the Raptors’ All-Stars were there to close it out.
Raptors: Instead of dealing with the prospects of a 5 a.m.-ish arrival in Toronto, the Raptors were spending Monday night in Miami.
Early in the third, DeRozan nailed five of his first six field-goal attempts – a bunch of floating jumpers and a three-pointer.
NOTES: Heat C Hassan Whiteside (sprained right knee) did not travel with the team and remained in Miami for rest and treatment. Not only is he a major part of small-ball lineups that the Heat have played well with over the last two games, but he’s also been one of their primary options guarding DeMar DeRozan.
As each went through shooting slumps, Raptors coach Dwane Casey stayed with them even as the criticism mounted. In Game 5, they combined for 59 points and shot 20-for-47 (42.5%) from the field and 5-for-10 (50%) from three.
I’m really looking for reasons to back the Raptors in this crucial Game 5, but the loss of Valanciunas really hurts the Raptors especially when their backcourt duo of Lowry and DeRozan struggles to score. We get paid a lot of money for a reason.
In the postseason, Wade averages 22.0 points and 4.4 assists per game.
The NBA contacted the Heat and requested that the team ensure there is enough time for the anthem performances when a Canadian team is visiting Miami.
Lowry and DeRozan scored 19 between them in the first quarter as the Raptors raced out to a 28-18 lead. Toronto took a 75-62 advantage into the fourth quarter.
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“When Steph would have a game like this a year ago, (former Warriors assistant) Alvin Gentry would say I’ve got two plays for you”. Toronto now leads the seven-game series, 3-2, and will have a chance to put away Miami on the road in Game 6 on Friday night. Both Luol Deng and DeMarre Carroll were forced to leave the game. I’m just trying to figure out the best way to play with it as possible.
