Ottawa Citizen

Lowry makes seamless return

- FRANK ZICARELLI fzicarelli@postmedia.com

There’s such a feel and a familiarit­y between Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan that sometimes no words are required.

The two Toronto Raptors allstars know how to play off each other, having an instinctiv­e way of performing that is only developed with trust and years of being together as teammates.

It’s why DeRozan was at ease during Wednesday’s road date against the Detroit Pistons, why all he had to do was give Lowry — who was playing his first game since wrist surgery on Feb. 14 — that look, and the ball would be delivered.

It was down the stretch when DeRozan emerged, three times scoring baskets that would deadlock the game, a kick out by DeRozan to Serge Ibaka, who also struggled with his shot, for a corner three-ball that provided Toronto with a three-point lead in what would be a 105-102 victory.

“Getting a rhythm with Kyle, that’s the easy part,’’ DeRozan said. “It’s about everybody else and understand­ing how we play, how well we play off each other, how quickly we think on the go.

“Just trying to keep everybody on the same page, especially with (Lowry) being back. We have a couple of more games to figure it out, but it feels good.”

It certainly did for Lowry, who didn’t show any signs of rust despite being out for close to two months. He ended up with 27 points, and — like DeRozan — added 10 assists.

With Thursday an off-day, the Raptors now get set to host the Miami Heat on Friday in their final regular-season home game.

They close out the regular season with a Sunday matinee in New York against the Knicks before playing the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday.

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