CLEVELAND - As the old saying goes, if you play with fire, youre going to get burned.
[b]Rayshawn Jenkins Jersey[/b] . Dwane Casey, who has used the phrase as a cautionary tale after lethargic starts of the recent past, came just short of saying I told you so Tuesday evening. His team had been getting away with it, far more often than any team should. Yes, theyre a resilient bunch and that was the case again in Cleveland as they clawed back from a 21-point deficit - even taking a brief fourth-quarter lead - but its been masking the underlying issue. Theyre an open-faced sandwich, missing the top bun. "You cant play in this league that way and expect to come back each and every night," Casey said after Torontos 102-100 loss to the Cavaliers. "Its bit us more than weve won, it feels like." "Until we fix that, among us, among ourselves, then its going to be an uphill battle every night." For the second time in three days, the Raptors trailed by nine after the first quarter, allowing another team with a losing record, also missing their best player, to shoot above 52 per cent to open the game. The start was eerily similar to Sundays, at home to Atlanta, lacking effort, focus and purpose on both ends of the floor. Even without injured point guard Kyrie Irving, Cleveland killed the visiting Raptors with speed and precision, exposing a reoccurring hole in their interior defence by darting into the paint at will. The comeback was inevitable. Its what they do. Down by 21 early in the third, Toronto staged a 21-9 run to close out the quarter. Kyle Lowry - running back and forth from the locker room all night, battling an upset stomach - scored half of his team-high 22 points in the frame. Greivis Vasquez would give the Raptors their first lead since the opening minutes, draining a three-pointer midway through the fourth before reality set in. "I think everybodys energy was low from having to come back," Lowry said. From that moment on they hit just one of their final 10 shots and on the last possession, down only two, they failed to even get one off. It was a play they had just run with success. Amir Johnson was looking for Lowry to turn the corner, but he was cut off. Instead, Vasquez took the handoff and, trying to spin right, towards the bucket, he lost his footing. "It was me going to my weak hand and I lost my balance, stepped kind of weird," said Vasquez, who scored 16 points of Torontos bench. "I turned the ball over. Ill take responsibility. Im not going to run away. Im a man." A noble gesture but, as Casey pointed out, its not the reason for the loss. "Thats not the game-decider," the Raptors coach said. "The game was decided the way we approached the first quarter." "Its easy to get up for OKC, its easy to get up for Miami, its easy to get up for Indiana but the teams that are not in the playoff picture, they are playing for something, too," he continued. "Theyre playing for pride, which is probably a little bit more dangerous than guys trying to save minutes and save themselves for the playoffs." Theres a lesson to be learned from this loss and it shouldnt take long to figure out whether or not its been absorbed. The Raptors - now the Easts fourth seed, leapfrogged by the Bulls with Tuesdays defeat - will travel to Boston in the second night of a back-to-back and first game of a home-and-home set with the Celtics, another scrappy team looking to play spoiler. "Weve got to get the mindset of being the hunter instead of the hunted because," Casey added. "Thats how we got where we are, being a desperate team, a hungry team and not believing the press clippings or where we are in the standings." Birthday blues Although Lowry would have preferred to celebrate his 28th birthday with a win, the Raptors point guard recorded his 18th double-double with 10 assists to go along with his 22 points. Lowry extended his career-high streak of 19 or more points to 10 games and also became the first Raptor to score 20-plus in eight straight since Chris Bosh did so in 2010. Amir passes VC on blocks list With his third-quarter swat on Spencer Hawes, Johnson recorded his 416th block as a member of the Raptors, passing Vince Carter for second on the teams all-time block shots list. Johnson, who had 12 points and nine rebounds on Tuesday, still has a ways to go to catch Bosh, topping the franchise list with 600 blocks. Patterson nearing a return Patrick Patterson, who has missed 10 straight games with an ulnar collateral sprain in his right elbow, was reassessed on Monday and is headlong well, the team revealed before Tuesdays game in Cleveland. Although hes been cleared for contact, theres still no timetable for his return to game action. "Its a lot up to the medical staff and when they feel he can go," Casey said. "Its one of those things where if he gets hit in the wrong way it could be trouble for a lot longer so thats why they want to make sure its well enough." The stat The Raptors fell just short of matching their largest comeback of the season. They last overcame a 21-point deficit in their home win over Dallas on Jan. 22. Toronto hasnt had multiple wins in which theyve trailed by 20 or more points in the same season since 2004-05. The quote "Weve just got to understand what were playing for," Vasquez said. "Weve got a big one tomorrow [in Boston]. Its a must-win because were actually playing for something. If you dont get up for that youve got to get your gas up. Weve just got to be motivated, man. This is crunch time. This is important for us. Tomorrows a must-win, no matter what. No excuses."
[b]Geno Smith Jersey[/b] . Every once in awhile, it seems like life lets dreams become real - and that is a gift.
[b]Stitched Chargers Jerseys[/b] . Marcus Olsson, 23, joins Blackburn on a free transfer from Swedens Halmstads. He made 139 appearances and scored 17 goals in his four years with the club. He earned his first caps for Sweden this month, featuring against Bahrain and Qatar.MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Marc Gasol scored 24 points, and the Memphis Grizzlies snapped the Golden State Warriors NBA-best 16-game winning streak with a 105-98 victory on Tuesday night.Mike Conley and Zach Randolph each scored 17 points, and Randolph also had 10 rebounds as Memphis earned its fifth straight win. Vince Carter added a season-high 16 points, and Jon Leuer had 11.The Warriors came in with the NBAs best record at 21-2. They lost for the first time since Nov. 11 against the Spurs, also the last team to beat Memphis. This was the first time in NBA history in which both teams had 19 or more wins in the first 24 games.Golden State star Stephen Curry missed back-to-back 3-pointers in the final 10 seconds. He had 19 points on 9-of-25 shooting, including a 1-for-10 night from beyond the arc.Klay Thompson scored 22 points for the Warriors, and Marreese Speights had 18.PELICANS 119, JAZZ 111NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Anthony Davis returned from a chest injury and scored 31 points, helping New Orleans rally for the win.Davis, who missed most of Friday nights victory over Cleveland and all of Sunday nights loss to Golden State, played with a protective vest that did not appear to inhibit him. He had nine rebounds and three blocks, with all three rejections coming in the pivotal final four minutes.Ryan Anderson hit six 3-pointers and finished with 28 points for New Orleans, while Tyreke Evans added 19 points, scoring nine during New Orleans 41-point fourth quarter.Enes Kanter scored 29 points for Utah, which has lost three straight and 12 of 13.THUNDER 104, KINGS 92SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Russell Westbrook had 32 points and seven assists, Kevin Durant scored 26 and Oklahoma City beat the reeling Sacramento Kings for its seventh straight win.The Kings played their first game since Michael Malone was fired as coach and lead assistant Tyrone Corbin was promoted to interim coach. They trailed 9-0 after 2 1/2 minutes and dropped to 2-8 while franchise centerpiece DeMarcus Cousins recovers from viral meningitis.The Thunder went ahead by 16 inn the first quarter, led by just seven at halftime and pulled away again in the closing minutes behind their star duo.
[b]Kellen Winslow Jersey[/b]. Oklahoma City improved to 7-1 since Durant returned from a broken right foot.Rudy Gay scored 22 points, and reserve Carl Landry added 14 for the Kings.MAVERICKS 107, KNICKS 87NEW YORK (AP) — Tyson Chandler had three dunks during Dallas sizzling start to his return to New York, and Dirk Nowitzki scored 16 points for the Mavericks.Chandler played a key role in the NBAs highest-scoring team putting together a nearly unstoppable start that gave it the lead for good. Monta Ellis added 14 points, and Chandler Parsons had 13 after missing a game with a sore lower back.Carmelo Anthony scored 26 points for the Knicks. Tim Hardaway Jr. had 14 but was 5 for 17 in another poor shooting effort.Shortly after hearing mostly cheers during introductions, Chandler dunked a lob pass for the games opening basket. He threw down another alley-oop that gave Dallas 10 baskets in its first 11 shots.HEAT 95, NETS 91NEW YORK (AP) — Dwyane Wade scored 28 points, leading Miami to the road win.The Heat had five players score in double figures, including three reserves. Starting forward Luol Deng had 18 points, and rookie Shabazz Napier scored 11.The game was delayed for 29 minutes in the first quarter when the installation of a new green roof at Barclays Center led to a water leak.Mason Plumlee had 21 points and nine rebounds for Brooklyn, and Joe Johnson scored 16 points. Deron Williams added 15 points and 11 assists.WIZARDS 109, TIMBERWOLVES 95WASHINGTON (AP) — John Wall scored 21 points and equaled a career high with 17 assists, helping Washington to its fifth consecutive win.Washington scored 14 straight to take a 14-2 lead less than 4 1/2 minutes into the game. Wall had 10 points and six assists in the first quarter.Rasual Butler had 23 points for the Wizards.Thaddeus Young, who led a third-quarter charge, had a season-high 29 points for Minnesota, which has lost nine of 10. Shabazz Muhammad scored 21.
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