Kawhi’s 45 lift Raptors over Jazz
TORONTO— Kawhi Leonard poured in a careerhigh 45 points—including 19 in the third quarter—to lead the Toronto Raptors to a 122-116 National Basketball Association win over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday. The Raptors improved to 28-11, keeping the pressure on the Milwaukee Bucks who boosted their league-leading record in terms of winning percentage to 26-10 with a 121-98 victory over the Detroit Pistons.—
TORONTO— Kawhi Leonard poured in a career-high 45 points to lead the Toronto Raptors to a 122-116 NBA victory over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday.
The Raptors improved to 2811, keeping the pressure on the Milwaukee Bucks who boosted their league-leading record in terms of winning percentage to 26-10 with a 121-98 win over the Detroit Pistons.
The Raptors were again without injured Jonas Valanciunas and Kyle Lowry, whose return date remains uncertain after receiving anti-inflammatory injections to combat back pain last week.
In their absence, Leonard excelled, making all seven of his field goal attempts in the third quarter as he scored 19 points in the period and the Raptors—who trailed by two at halftime—pulled away.
After making just two threepointers in the first half, the Raptors connected on their first three from beyond the arc in the third to seize control.
“They’re a well-coached team, they’ve got great guys who compete every possession,” Leonard said.
In Milwaukee, the Bucks won their fourth straight with the help of 25 points from Brook Lopez, 22 from Khris Middleton and 18 from Eric Bledsoe.
In Denver, Nikola Jokic’s triple-double of 19 points, 15 assists and 14 rebounds propelled the Nuggets to a 115-108 victory over the New York Knicks. OTHER RESULTS: Philadelphia 119, LA Clippers 113; Portland 113, Sacramento 108 (OT)