November 7, 2007

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(TORONTO) - Another woeful shooting night by the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday spoiled a pivotal performance by all-star Chris Bosh.

Hedo Turkoglu had 24 points and a career-high 15 rebounds as the Orlando Magic beat the Raptors 105-96 on Wednesday, sending Toronto to its third straight loss.

Bosh was one bright spot on an otherwise disappointing night, scoring a season-high 26 points and grabbing 10 rebounds to bounce back from one of the worst games of his careers.

``I'm pretty tired, back to back, just a lot of minutes today (38),'' Bosh said. ``I'm starting to get my legs under me, I'm starting to get more confidence. I can sleep good tonight knowing I played hard and gave it my best today.''

Andrea Bargnani finished with 16 points, while Juan Dixon and T.J. Ford had 12 apiece, and Jose Calderon had 10 for Toronto (2-3).

Rashard Lewis added 24 points for Orlando (4-1), which has won the first three games of its four-game road trip.

``I think it's good, so now you've got to win four,'' said Orlando head coach Stan Van Gundy.



Reminiscent of their previous two games, the Raptors couldn't sink anything in the early going, shooting just 34 per cent before halftime and trailing by as much as 15 points.

``I think we just have to do a better job of concentrating on getting to the bucket, I think we're settling a lot for jump shots and everybody on the team is falling victim to that,'' Bosh said. ``I think we're kind of passive at the beginning of the games, and that leads to us being in a hole early on.''

The Raptors clawed their way back into the game, and were down just 78-74 heading into the fourth quarter in front of 17,977 at the Air Canada Centre. A three-pointer by Bargnani put Toronto up 92-91 with 3:56 remaining for the Raptors' first lead of the game.

But the Magic responded with an 8-0 run and were up 99-92 with two minutes left. Keith Bogans sunk a three-pointer with 1:07 left to put the Magic up by eight, which sealed the victory for Orlando.

``It's tough when you put yourself in a hole, and you have to expend so much energy just to get yourself back into the game,'' said Ford. ``And then when you finally get it close and they come back and make a shot, it's kind of tough.''

The Raptors were coming off an ugly 112-85 loss to the Bucks in Milwaukee the previous night, in which Bosh went without a field goal for only the second time in his career, and finished with one point and two rebounds.

He shot 6-for-15 Wednesday, and looked more confident as the game went on.

``I think Chris and Andrea were very active in the third and fourth,'' said Raptors coach Sam Mitchell. ``(Chris) was aggressive going to the baseline.''

The Raptors shot just 38 per cent on the night though, while the Magic finished at 50 per cent from the field and outrebounded Toronto 51-41 overall.

Bosh has been hampered by a nagging left knee injury that bothered him through the pre-season. But already into the thick of the season _ Wednesday's game was the second in a gruelling stretch of four games in five days _ there's no time to ease the all-star forward into the fray.

``We understand that Chris missed a lot of time, and the reality of the NBA is, some of things he's got to get, it's going to have to happen during the game, because you look at this week, we don't have the practice time,'' Mitchell said.

``Since I've been here, Chris has dealt with injuries, different things throughout the whole season. We're hoping for that day when he finally gets back, 100 per cent and feeling the way he wants to feel. He's slowly but surely getting there.''

Bosh also had the unenviable task of guarding fellow all-star Dwight Howard all night. Howard had 17 points and nine rebounds, scoring with an array of dunks and pretty hook shots, but also picked up five fouls.

``He's a big strong guy. It's hard. It's a very good test of strength, and I don't mind a challenge,'' Bosh said.

Before the game, Mitchell drew chuckles from reporters when asked about the sheer physical strength of Howard.

``I tell people, `When I come back, I want his body. I'll keep my face, but I want his body,''' Mitchell said.

``He's already a load right now, and I can't imagine what this young man's going to be like a couple of years ago, when his basketball IQ starts catching up with his physical attributes.''

The Magic were without guard J.J. Redick (back spasms) on Wednesday.

The Raptors missed their first 11 shots Wednesday, quickly falling behind by 13 points to grumbles of the ACC fans. They shot 33 per cent in the quarter and Orlando took a 31-23 lead into the second.

A three by Turkoglu early in the second put the Magic up by 15, but the Raptors the Raptors used a 15-5 run to cut the lead to five. Orlando was up 52-47 at halftime.

Toronto poured it on in the third, a driving reverse layup by Bargnani cutting Orlando's lead to two points midway through the frame. The Magic took a 78-74 lead into the fourth.

Notes: The Raptors are at Philadelphia on Friday and Chicago on Saturday. . . The Raptors put Jamario Moon on the inactive list and activated Maceo Baston before the game. . . Former Raptor Chris Childs was at the game.