Thomas’ 25 points not enough for Boston in defeat
Boston — DeMar DeRozan scored 23 points and Terrence Ross had 13 of his 21 in the fourth quarter as the Toronto Raptors took command in the second half and beat the Boston Celtics 113-103 on Friday night.
DeMarre Carroll scored 10 of his 21 points in the third quarter and Kyle Lowry finished with 14 points and nine assists for the Raptors.
Isaiah Thomas led Boston with 25 points. Avery Bradley added 13, including a 3-pointer that got Boston within 108-99 with 1:54 left during a rally that came much too late for the Celtics to rally.
Ross hit six of his first seven shots in the fourth quarter to help the Raptors secure the lead they built in the third by capitalizing on Boston’s many mistakes.
Toronto held the Celtics without a field goal for a stretch of nearly 5 minutes in the third quarter and outscored Boston 31-20 in the period.
The game was tied at 54-all at halftime then the Raptors blew it open in the third quarter by forcing the Celtics into a sequence of turnovers and missed shots.
Carroll hit consecutive 3-pointers Raptors Celtics and Luis Scola made a layup and a 3-pointer during a 13-2 run that gave Toronto an 82-68 lead.
Boston went without a field goal from Amir Johnson’s 3-pointer with 6:05 left in the period until Thomas drove for a layup with 52 seconds left.
Tip-ins
Raptors: Jonas Valanciunas pulled down 10 rebounds and Toronto outrebounded Boston 53-38. ... Toronto made just 13 field goals in the first half, but seven were 3-pointers.
Celtics: Kelly Olynyk and Johnson scored 11 apiece for Boston. Tyler Zeller added 10 points.
Up Next
Raptors: Host Milwaukee on Sunday night.
Celtics: Host San Antonio on Sunday.