Jay Satur - Raptors.com
The Raptors look to make it three straight wins on their four-game trip when they end a back-to-back set against the Heat in Miami tonight. (7:30 PM ET, Sportsnet 360, Newstalk 1010).
Projected Starting Lineups
Raptors: Kyle Lowry (G), DeMar DeRozan (G), Terrence Ross (F), Tyler Hansbrough (F), Jonas Valanciunas (C)
Heat: Goran Dragic (G), Dwayane Wade (G), Luol Deng (F), Udonis Haslem (F), Hassan Whiteside (C)
Injury/Roster Report
Raptors: Amir Johnson - sprained right ankle (out)
Heat: Josh McRoberts - right meniscus surgery (out), Chris Bosh - blood clot (out), Shabazz Napier - sports hernia surgery (out), Henry Walker - left elbow soreness (questionable), Hassan Whiteside - right hand laceration (probable)
Game Notes
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After some heroics from Lou Williams on Friday, the Raptors once again pulled their record level with the Bulls and regained third place in the always-changing Eastern Conference.
The Raptors' win on Friday, coupled with the Wizards' costly loss to the Nets, puts Toronto in a position to clinch homecourt advantage with its next win or the next Washington defeat. The Raptors can also match the franchise record for wins (48) tonight in Miami, which would also keep the team's first 50-win season within the realm of possibility.
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Kyle Lowry will try and build on a return the featured some understandable rust with his shot, but he still found ways to impact the game with a team-high seven assists and perhaps more impressively, a big night on the glass with eight rebounds. Lowry admitted post-game this his back was sore, but not as sore as he expected after logging 33 minutes.
"For us, next week is way more important than right now," head coach Dwane Casey said after Friday's win. "We wanted to get him some run, but we didn't want him going 33 minutes and that was a major concern going down the stretch. That was the only negative of tonight, that he played more than we wanted."
Keep an eye on how Lowry responds in the second game of a back-to-back tonight.
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The Raptors ended a 16-game losing streak against Miami with a 102-92 win at Air Canada Centre on March 13th. Lowry was instrumental in the win, with a team-high 19 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and a career-high seven steals. With a win tonight, the Raptors would win their first season series vs. the Heat since the 2008-09 season.
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Tonight's game is a must win for the Heat tonight in its fight to reach the post-season. With five losses in their last six games, most recently surrendering a 19-point halftime lead to the Bulls in a 89-78 defeat on Thursday, the Heat finds itself on the outside of the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Miami enters tonight's game 10th in the East, two games behind eighth-place Brooklyn with three games to play and the Pacers still a game ahead in ninth. Essentially, the Heat needs to win out and get a lot of help, but a victory tonight is imperative.
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The Heat have done the majority of their damage in the all-time series in Miami, where it has built a 28-8 record vs. the Raptors (48-22 all-time). That includes a 107-102 Heat win in Miami way back on November 2nd in the Raptors' second road game of the season.
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If the Heat can get its offence going like it did in that first November meeting, it could spell trouble for the Raptors again. Miami ranks 28th in the league in points per game (94.4), but is an NBA-best 14-0 this season when scoring at least 105 points.