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Game Rap: Raptors 86 Wizards 93 (OT)

Holly MacKenzie – Raptors.com

It Was Over When: The Wizards outscored the Raptors 11-4 in overtime. Toronto was scoreless for the first 4:31 of the extra session, scoring twice in the final 29.8 seconds after the outcome was decided. Washington opened OT with a three-pointer from Paul Pierce and a dunk from Nene to take a five-point lead and flip the momentum in the game.

Turning Point: The first turning point in this game came in the second quarter with the Raptors up by seven points with seven minutes to go in the half. Paul Pierce entered the game for Washington, scored 10 points in the quarter and helped propel the Wizards to a four-point halftime lead.

Turning Point II: The second turning point came after the Raptors played from behind throughout the entire second half. Thanks to eight points apiece from Lou Williams (including two three-pointers, and a third that was waved off because of an Amir Johnson offensive foul) and Greivis Vasquez, Toronto outscored Washington 26-17 in the fourth with Vasquez drilling a huge three-pointer to tie the game with 25.9 seconds remaining. Neither team could score on their final possessions in regulation and the game went into overtime.

Raptors Player(s) Of The Game: On an afternoon where the entire Raptors team was struggling, Greivis Vasquez made four of his six field goal attempts, none bigger than the clutch three to force overtime. Amir Johnson also came off the bench to score a team-high 18 points on 8-for-12 shooting to go with eight rebounds.

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Game 1 Game-Changer: With both teams shooting under 40 per cent, there were a lot of misses. Veteran Paul Pierce put in the best performance on Saturday, scoring a game-high 20 points on 7-for-10 shooting. The Wizards took things to another level when Pierce checked into the game in the second quarter trailing by seven, and Pierce was constantly in the ear of his younger teammates when the game stretched into overtime, reminding them to stay calm.

“We just continued to keep talking in the huddle, we said we have to keep defending,” Pierce said. “Our huddles were very active. Guys kept being positive talking to each other. We noticed they were settling for long jumpers and we just said we’ve got to rebound. If we continue to rebound like we do with two minutes left, we’ll walk away with this win. We didn't get discouraged when they tied it up.”

Lowry’s Rough Game 1: Kyle Lowry couldn’t get anything going offensively, shooting just 2-for-10 from the floor. He played 33 minutes before fouling out and finished with seven points, eight rebounds and four assists. The team will need more from all of its starters in Game 2, but especially more from Lowry, who is such an important part of everything the Raptors do.

“I’m very mad and very upset but I gotta deal with it,” Lowry said. “It’s something I’ve dealt with before and it’s not going to keep being like that. It’s something that comes with who I am. At the end of the day, a bad game is one bad game. I’ve got another one Tuesday.”

DeRozan sounded confident that the team would make some of the shots they normally make in Game 2. With Lowry, DeRozan, Terrence Ross and Lou Williams combining to shoot just 15-for-57, there is certainly room for a lot of improvement offensively.

“We were still aggressive,” DeRozan said. “I was aggressive, I didn't shy away from a lot of shots I’m used to taking. Not just me, all of us. Kyle, Lou, we missed a lot of easy shots as a team. We shot 39 percent from the field. Overall I still thought we played well. We played great defence, we just got out-rebounded where we could have done a better job at that part.”

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Crowd Fired Up Pierce: In the days before the series began, a quote from Pierce made plenty of headlines in Toronto and led to fans booing Pierce loudly while also chanting, “Paul Pierce sucks.” After the game, Pierce talked about feeding off of playing the role of villain. He also had more praise for the Air Canada Centre crowd, calling it one of the best he’s been around in his 17-year career.

“It’s a tough environment to play in, it’s a tough place to win in, but you’ve got to love these moments,” Pierce said. ”You’ve got to love those type of buildings. They’re excited about their team. It’s one of the best crowds I've ever been a part of on the road. I think it’s something that really drives me. I get more excitement out of going on the road and getting a win than at home.”

That's A Rap

“I thought we did an excellent job defensively. We held them to 39 percent shooting and a lot of the rebounds in those situations, they had 20 second-chance points. That’s the game. We’ve talked about it. It’s not just our big guys, it’s everybody. We start watching when a shot goes up and we have to get in and clean up the boards. We know that. That’s been an issue. We do a good job, we don't do a good job. We have to get consistent with it. Until we make it a priority, it’s going to be hard for us. With that said, there’s still a lot of basketball to be played so it’s not over. It’s not gloom and doom.” – Dwane Casey on his team’s need to rebound better moving forward

By The Numbers

61 – Rebounds for the Wizards compared to just 48 for the Raptors. Washington had 19 offensive rebounds, nearly doubling Toronto’s 10.

15 – Point lead was the largest of the game, for Washington. Toronto led by seven in the second quarter.

14 – Free throw attempts for the Raptors, who averaged 24.6 trips to the line per game during the regular season. 

20 – Second chance points for the Wizards, 14 for the Raptors.

They Said It

“We did a good job defensively, holding them to 39 per cent. They killed us on the offensive glass. They were getting tip-outs and those extra hustle points which is what really killed us.” – Amir Johnson on Toronto’s rebounding struggle

“A lot of the shots that we did get were on the move. And usually we’re a team that drives and kicks. But you gotta give credit to Washington. They had a great game plan of coming in and making it difficult for us to score. And tonight, it showed. And so our next job is to come in, watch the film obviously, look at some of the things that we can correct, and we make adjustments to benefit us.” – Lou Williams on the quality of looks the Raptors got in Game 1

“Our shooters were 15 for 57. Shots we have to take we’re going to continue to take because that’s who we are. We just have to make them. We had great looks and I believe in our shooters and they believe in themselves. That part I'm not concerned about, they’re not going to miss that many shots again. What we have to be concerned with is our rebounding.” – Dwane Casey stressing importance of controlling boards

Up Next: The Raptors look to even the series in Game 2 at Air Canada Centre, Tuesday 8 P.M. ET. (T.V. Canada: TSN, US: NBATV).