featured-image

Game Rap: Raptors 122, San Lorenzo 105

Holly MacKenzie - Raptors.com

IT WAS OVER WHEN

Toronto steadily built upon its fourth-quarter lead, outscoring San Lorenzo 35-23 in the fourth quarter to protect a 122-105 victory in the second game of a back-to-back. The win came with seven Raptors players resting, and although there wasn’t a lot of defence played, it gave reserves and rookies an opportunity for extended playing time.

TURNING POINT

Toronto led by five after three quarters, then quickly extended their advantage to nine points with 9:11 remaining. Coming out of the San Lorenzo called timeout, the Raptors reeled off a 10-2 run to stretch the lead to 17, the largest of the game, and they rolled on to the victory from there.

A DIFFERENT STARTING FIVE

In the second night of a back-to-back, Dwane Casey elected to give much of his rotation the night off for rest. The decision allowed rookies and players battling for the final spot on the roster an extended night of playing time, while giving the coaching staff another chance to evaluate their play. DeMar DeRozan, Kyle Lowry, Jared Sullinger, DeMarre Carroll, Jonas Valanciunas, Patrick Patterson and Cory Joseph all sat out. Ross is resting a sore knee, while Sullinger is resting a sore foot. Fred VanVleet, Norman Powell, Drew Crawford, Pascal Siakam and Lucas Nogueira started for the Raptors.

RAPTORS PLAYER OF THE GAME

Fred VanVleet has been impressive throughout the preseason with his steady play and poise and Friday’s game was no exception. Getting the start in place of Kyle Lowry and Cory Joseph who were both given the night off for rest, VanVleet made the most of his opportunity once again, exploding for a game-high 31 points on 12-for-19 field goals, including 2-for-3 from beyond the arc and 5-for-7 from the free throw line. He added five rebounds, five assists and a steal in his 38 minutes and the Raptors were a +25 while he was on the floor.

UNDERRATED RAPTORS PLAYER OF THE GAME

Norman Powell was the best player on the floor on Friday night, and he scored an easy 17 points on 6-for-8 shooting in his 24 minutes. Powell was so good, though, it’s hard to call him underrated. That nod would go to rookie Pascal Siakam who played 24 minutes and was extremely active for each of them. Siakam scored 16 points on 8-for-10 field goals to go with four rebounds, three assists and a blocked shot.

THAT'S A RAP…

“He’s aggressive. He kind of reminds me of myself, never backing down to whoever is on the court. He can finish with either hand. He’s crafty with the ball, using his body to finish over bigger guys and he’s an overall playmaker. Finding guys, pushing the tempo, playing defence, that gives him a chance when he’s out there playing and he can score.”- Norman Powell on why Fred VanVleet’s been so successful in preseason

BY THE #’S

61…Percent shooting for the Raptors in a high-scoring affair that left Raptors head coach Dwane Casey preaching the importance of defence after giving up 105 points.

22…Assists for Toronto, 28 for San Lorenzo.

8…Just eight turnovers for the Raptors, leading to 11 points for San Lorenzo, while San Lorenzo had 17 miscues, leading to 26 points for Toronto.

11…Deep for the Raptors as Casey played the entire roster with seven of his players resting.

THEY SAID IT…

“Fred did a good job. He did a solid job. He ran the team pretty well, they were blitzing him, he did a good job of finding people, attacking with his speed, [and he] took some hits.”- Dwane Casey on a big performance from Fred VanVleet

“I can notice it already, you get used to the new system, the new rules. Everything takes some time, but I think every game it’s a small improvement.”- Jakob Poeltl on getting more familiar with the NBA with each game he plays

“Argentina basketball is one of the premier basketball countries in the world. Their basketball is bar none one of the best. They start in bitty ball and all the way up. They’re some of the most intelligent players in the world. Anytime we can have a relationship with their team is unbelievable.”- Dwane Casey on the opportunity to play a game against San Lorenzo

UP NEXT:

The Raptors will get four days of practice in before Wednesday’s matchup against the Pistons in Detroit at 7:30 P.M. ET.