ELEVENTH HEAVEN
Raptors extend streak with 111-107 win at ACC over the Pistons,
It wasn’t pretty by any means — gruesome and long, painful and lackadaisical would be better words that come to mind in its aftermath — and perhaps there will be lessons learned but, if not, so be it because there can be no complaints about the ultimate result.
The Toronto Raptors won another one Saturday night, their 11th in a row and seventh straight on what felt like a neverending homestand that has now come to an end.
So if wasn’t crisp and filled with highlight reel plays, does it really matter? Every game is different, they may look great the next time out and a 111-107 win over the Detroit Pistons beats the alternative.
“This game is fleeting . . . you can win11in a row and all of a sudden you lose seven, eight in a row if you continue to play with the lack of focus like we did in the fourth quarter,” coach Dwane Casey said. “Hopefully we learned from it, we have to learn from it.”
The fourth quarter was indeed ugly and didn’t send the Air Canada Centre crowd out dancing into the night.
The fourth took three-quarters of an hour to complete, Toronto gave up 35 points, committed five turnovers, missed five free throws, 12 of the 19 field goals they attempted and four of five threepointers they took.
The game never really got nerve-rackingly close — Detroit got within four but with only 5.5 seconds left and DeMar DeRozan iced the game at the free throw line — but it did get a bit uncomfortable at times.
“You give 35 points, the turnovers, lack of focus,” was Casey’s lament.
“Human nature takes over down the stretch. It’s not winning basketball and I think our guys understand that now.
“They appreciate the win but understand that’s not how you close out a game.”
Still, the after-taste of Saturday’s game won’t linger too long, and the truth is the Raptors have had one of the best months in franchise history to take a solid grasp on second place in the Eastern Conference with eyes on the top spot rather than glances in the rearview mirror.
The 11-game win streak is the best a Raptors team has ever had, and Toronto has never swept a seven-game homestand before. With a 32-15 record, they are better than they have ever been at this point in a season.
They have created a comfortable margin of five games between themselves and third-place Chicago in the East as they head out on a five-game road trip leading into the all-star break.
The production from all-star starters DeRozan (a game-best 29 points Saturday) and Kyle Lowry is consistent but they are much more than a two-man band.
Saturday, with recently hot backups Patrick Patterson and Terrence Ross cooling off significantly, it was two others who picked up the slack.
Bismack Biyombo had his first double-double in 14 games with 12 points and 13 rebounds while Cory Joseph chipped in with 16 points.
If one thing has emerged during this winning streak it’s that the team’s depth is far more consistent and offers a huge boost overall.
“He played huge, made his free throws, manning the paint, blocking shots,” Casey said of Biyombo. “I thought he came in and gave us a whole big boost of energy off the bench and really manned the paint against (Andre) Drummond. Made him work to catch it — Drummond’s a handful for Biz and JV — and I thought Biz came in and really forced his catches out, made him work, gave it to us on the offensive end as well with the offensive rebounding.”