April 8, 2007

TORONTO (CP) -- Anthony Parker poured in a career-high 27 points to lift the red-hot Raptors to a 103-89 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Sunday, Toronto's first appearance at Air Canade Centre since clinching its first division title.

Chris Bosh added 22 points and 11 rebounds for his eighth consecutive double-double. Joey Graham tied his career high with 19 points, while Juan Dixon finished with 17.

The victory was No. 8 in the last 10 for Toronto (44-33), and a big boost in the Raptors' quest to secure homecourt advantage for the first round of the playoffs.

The Raptors now trail the Bulls by a game-and-a half for second in the East.

Ben Gordon had 27 points to top Chicago (46-32).

In a matchup of two teams battling it out for seeding position in the Eastern Conference, the Raptors didn't take control until late in the third quarter. Dixon tossed up a 34-foot jumper at the buzzer that brought the arena to its feet and put Toronto up 77-67 heading into the fourth.

The Raptors scorched Chicago with a 27-8 run to open the fourth, capped by a three-point play from Dixon that gave them a 19-point lead midway through the frame. The Raptors would stretch their lead to 21 on a basket by Dixon with three minutes to play, and then coach Sam Mitchell subbed off his starters as the clock wound down and Toronto wrapped up the victory.

Parker shot 8-for-12 from the floor, and connected on six of his 10 attempts from three-point range to top his previous career best of 23 points.

On a feel-good night for the Raptors, they received a loud ovation when they were announced as the divison champions in front of a capacity crowd of 19,800 at the ACC _ the Raptors clinched the Atlantic Division title Friday when they beat Philadelphia 94-85 and then New Jersey lost at Chicago.

Jorge Garbajosa also made an appearance to cheer on his teammates. The Raptors forward, who is out for the season with an ankle injury, watched from the locker-room with his bad foot propped up. Jose Calderon and Darrick Martin both wore Garbajosa's No. 15 on their wrist band.

And the victory came against one of the hottest teams in the east with the Bulls having won seven of eight heading into the game.

The one negative of the night came when swingman Morris Peterson was ejected for sending Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich to the floor. Hinrich was driving to the basket with 6:06 left in the second quarter when Peterson hit him from behind on the side of the head. Peterson was slapped with a Type 2 flagrant foul which means an automatic ejection.

It was an otherwise solid victory for Toronto, which shot 44 per cent on the night, and outscored the Bulls 24-22 in the paint. Chicago outrebounded the Raptors 44-41 and shot 42 per cent on the night.

The Raptors also needed the win, as the final five games of the season could be tough slogging for the Raptors. They have two back-to-backs _ including this game and Monday's game at Minnesota _ and two meetings with the East-leading Detroit Pistons.

The Raptors raced out to a nine-point lead midway through the first quarter, but couldn't sustain it. The Bulls ended the quarter on a 13-5 run, capped by a three-pointer by Thabo Sefolosha that cut the Raptors' lead to 23-22 heading into the second.

The Raptors struggled for much of the second quarter, shooting just 6-for-19 from the floor. Gordon hit a running three-pointer with 1.6 seconds left that gave the Bulls a 50-46 lead at halftime.

Parker led the way with 10 points in the third, and Dixon hit a 34-foot running jumper at the buzzer to put Toronto up 77-67 with one quarter left to play.

Notes: The Raptors ended their 15-game losing streak against Chicago back in February, edging the Bulls 112-111. . . The Bulls had won the previous seven games at Air Canada Centre.