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PHILADELPHIA - For the first time since April of 2007 - the year they won the division - the Raptors sit atop the Atlantic. Of course, this speaks more to the current state of the division - not unlike the only year they won it - than it does to the 5-7 Raptors. Tim Leiweke doesnt need to map out his parade route just yet and Drake, his global ambassador, can hold off on designing the banner. "Its a great position to be in right now, its a feel-good position but at the end of the day it doesnt really matter until its the end of the season," said Kyle Lowry, putting things into perspective after an uplifting 108-98 road victory over Philadelphia. "Its a great position to build off of [but] we still have 70-something games to go and we have to take it day-by-day, game-by-game." Despite a mediocre start to the season and the inconsistencies that have plagued them on both ends, the Raptors find themselves in unfamiliar territory, at the top of the mountain looking down. What they can see from there isnt pretty. For at least three games - their undefeated start to their campaign, including wins over Miami and Chicago - the 76ers were the darlings of the division. Since then they have come back down to earth and are starting to resemble the team many believed would be the worst in the association. They have now dropped four of their last five, showing their age as the youngest team in the NBA in Wednesdays loss to Toronto. Sitting at the bottom of the division are two 3-8 teams from New York expected to reign supreme in the Atlantic this season while a rebuilding Celtics club is sandwiched in the middle. For now, the title means very little but being a division leader at this juncture in the season serves as a reminder; there are other teams, several of them, that are as lost, if not more lost than the Raptors. DeMar DeRozan used the word "opportunity" a couple of times after the game. Thats exactly what this represents. There is an opportunity in the Atlantic, in the East for them assuming theyre interested in it. Assuming they continue to play like they did in Philadelphia on Wednesday, instead of reverting back to the team that dropped consecutive games to Chicago and Portland. "It means a lot," exclaimed Rudy Gay. "Its a step for us. Its an early step but its a step. We have to take these baby steps to get to where we want to get and thats ultimately the playoffs. So weve got to take everything we can get right now." "Its 12 games into the season," cautioned a less enthusiastic Dwane Casey. "Theres a lot of work to do. Its a long season, its going to be a marathon. Were nowhere near where we need to be." For at least one night they looked a lot closer to that team they need to be. For only the third time all season the ball moved consistently for 48 minutes - or something close to it - and the results, like in the blowout wins over Utah and Memphis, were as you would expect. With a renewed commitment to moving the ball, emphasized all week by Casey, the Raptors benefited from a more balanced scoring attack and easier looks at the rim. "We need to make sure we put that in a bottle and bring it back every night," Casey said of the teams ball movement. For the Raptors, 24 assists was a season-best and Gay, three nights after being held without a helper in the loss to Portland, recorded a career-high of eight dimes. "Weve got to do it on a consistent basis and not let the ball stick," said DeRozan, who led all scorers with 33 points on an efficient 10-of-19 shooting. "Weve got a lot of talented players on this team that can do various things. Rudy showed it tonight that he can do it with his passing ability." "Were putting each other in a position to be successful and its working for us," added Lowry, who pitched in with 10 assists of his own. Burned by three-point shooting on Sunday, Toronto was able to get more efficient looks from long distance as a result of improved movement. The Raptors connected on a season-high 14 three-pointers (on 29 attempts) with three players - DeRozan, Lowry and Terrence Ross - knocking down three triples apiece and a couple - Gay and Steve Novak - chipping in with two. For at least 48 hours the Raptors can enjoy the division lead, after all theyve waited seven seasons to reclaim it, but after that its back to business. "Well take it but its early," Casey said. "Weve got to continue to work." DeRozan excels from the corners Coming into camp, DeRozan raved about the work he had put in on his three-point shot during the offseason. 12 games into the season, the fruit of his labour is starting to show. After hitting three of four attempts from beyond the arch Wednesday, DeRozan is now shooting a more than respectable 38 per cent from long distance, which would be a career-high, besting his 28 percent clip from last year. Most impressive is his production from the corners; the most efficient three-point shot available. DeRozan was three of four from the corners against Philadelphia and is now shooting 10-of-16 from that region on the season. "Like they say, its the easiest shot from the three point line," DeRozan said of the corner three. "Analytical, you know, whatever. Its the easiest shot and I just try to get there and knock it down every time I catch it." Overall, the Raptors guard is averaging 29.3 points, shooting 51 per cent from the floor over his last four games. Gays all-around game After hoisting 27 shots and being held without an assist in Sundays loss, Gay made a concerted effort to get his teammates involved early against the 76ers. Gay struggled with his shot - and missed several easy looks around the basket - in the first half, hitting just one of seven field goal attempts but had six rebounds and six assists. In the third quarter Gay awoke from his offensive slumber, scoring 15 of his 18 points and shooting 5-of-7. He finished with eight rebounds and eight assists. Breakout from Ross Ross had one of his better games as a pro on Wednesday, utilizing both his athleticism and outside jumper, even registering a pair of assists. The sophomore was consistently engaged on both ends of the floor in a season-high 17-point, seven-rebound performance off the bench. "I thought he struggled a little bit in the last game and [I] got his attention a little bit when he didnt play in the second half against Portland," Casey said. "He did his job tonight, came out and played, stayed focused on both ends of the floor." Up next The Raptors return to Toronto, where theyll play their next four games, and host the Washington Wizards at the Air Canada Centre Friday. Catch it on TSN2 and listen live on TSN 1050 Radio beginning at 7:00pm et. Cheap Kenny Stabler Jersey . Schenn scored the game-winning goal and added two assists to lead the Philadelphia Flyers to a 4-1 win over the Calgary Flames at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Tuesday. Cheap Bo Jackson Jersey . Louis Blues. Shane Hnidy joins Brian Munz for the broadcast on TSN 1290 Radio at 7pm ct. http://www.theraidersteamproshop.com/Youth-Tim-Brown-Elite-J ersey/ . Robinson finished with 17 points, all but two in the second half, and Lawson had 14 after halftime and finished with a game-high 11 assists as the Nuggets handed Dallas its first home loss in eight games this season. J.J. Hickson led Denver with 22, and Kenneth Faried added 10 points and 10 rebounds. Kenny Stabler Jersey . Catch all the action on TSN2 at 11pm et/8pm pt. The nine-time Big 12 champion Jayhawks are positioning themselves for another title, as they have run out to a flawless 6-0 mark in conference play thus far. Amari Cooper Raiders Jersey . Cote was eligible to become a free agent Feb. 15. Cote helped running back Jon Cornish run for a league-high 1,813 rushing yards en route to being named the leagues most outstanding player. NEW YORK -- Miguel Cabrera and the hard-hitting Tigers were too much for Daisuke Matsuzaka in his return to the majors. Cabrera hit a three-run homer, Torii Hunter also connected and Detroit tagged Matsuzaka early in his Mets debut to beat New York 6-1 on Friday night. "When I used to catch him in Boston, he had a little more on it," Tigers slugger Victor Martinez said. "Today I think his ball was pretty straight. He left a few pitches up in the zone, and the big guys didnt miss." Hunter added a long RBI double and Doug Fister (11-6) pitched into the seventh inning to help Detroit win the interleague series opener. Austin Jackson went deep for the second straight day for the AL Central leaders, back in New York after dropping two of three at Yankee Stadium two weeks ago. The series resumes Saturday afternoon with a rematch of All-Star game starters at Citi Field: Max Scherzer puts his 18-1 record on the line against New York ace Matt Harvey in a nationally televised game. "You cant beat that matchup," Hunter said. "If you blink youre going to miss something." The Mets said its the first time All-Star game starters will square off in a regular-season game during the same season, according to research by the Elias Sports Bureau. "I figure this place will be hopping pretty good," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "It should be fun." Minus two injured starters, the Mets signed Matsuzaka on Thursday to fill a hole in the rotation and immediately handed him a difficult assignment. Led by Cabrera and Prince Fielder, the Tigers began the night leading the majors in batting average and second in runs. The right-hander from Japan, a former Red Sox star who had been pitching in Clevelands farm system, got off to a promising start. Working on three days rest and wearing No. 16, he threw a called third strike past Jackson and was ahead 0-2 on Hunter when the five-time All-Star sent a booming drive far beyond the left-field fence. Cabrera and Fielder followed with singles, but Dice-K prevented further damage. He wasnt as fortunate in the second. Omar Infante led off with an infield single and Jackson walked with two outs. Hunter hit a ground-rule double that bounced over the 408 sign in straightaway centre field to put the Tigers up 2-1. Cabrera crushed the next pitch, a 91 mph fastball that he sent soaring just inside the left-field foul pole for his 41st home run. "I was thinking about how I wanted to pitch him from before the game, but it was hard to figure it out until you face him," Matsuzaka said through a translator. "I dont think it was a bad pitch, but he hit a home run off it." Chassing his second consecutive AL Triple Crown, Cabrera has comfortable leads in batting average and RBIs.dddddddddddd He moved within five home runs of Baltimore slugger Chris Davis. "Its just unbelievable," Fister said, then changed his tune. "Its no longer unbelievable. Its definitely believable, and hes doing it for a long time in a row now." Working with rookie Travis dArnaud, catching his fifth major league game, Matsuzaka settled in from there and did not allow another baserunner. He retired his final 10 batters and was charged with five runs on six hits over five innings. "I thought the last three innings he was very, very good," Mets manager Terry Collins said. "The arm issues have caused his velocity to go down a little bit. But I tell you what, his breaking stuff is still very good. I was happy with the way he finished up." Jackson added a solo shot in the seventh off reliever Carlos Torres, originally scheduled to start the game before the Mets signed Matsuzaka (0-1) for the remainder of this season. The Red Sox shelled out more than $100 million to import Matsuzaka in 2007. He won 33 games and a World Series ring during his first two years in the majors, but injuries and poor performances followed. He had Tommy John surgery on his pitching elbow in 2011. Matsuzaka went 1-7 with an 8.28 ERA in 11 starts for Boston last season and was beaten out by Scott Kazmir for the final spot in Clevelands rotation this spring. The 32-year-old pitcher agreed to go to Triple-A Columbus, where he was 5-8 with a 3.92 ERA in 19 starts. After working through early season injuries, Matsuzaka had been effective in recent weeks. He was granted his release by the Indians on Tuesday, and the third-place Mets decided he was their best option to fill a void the rest of the way. "I just kind of studied his old video and went off that," Hunter said. Fister gave up only an RBI single to Marlon Byrd in the first. The big right-hander induced two double plays and allowed eight hits in 6 1-3 innings before three relievers finished up. NOTES: Martinez, normally a DH, made his first start at catcher for Detroit since Aug. 4, 2011. "It felt great all-around," he said. ... The Tigers said C Alex Avila left his rehab game Thursday with Triple-A Toledo after three innings due to dizziness. Avila is on the disabled list with concussion symptoms. ... Fister was 0-1 in his previous three starts after winning four in a row. ... Collins said he wears No. 10 in grateful tribute to Leyland and credited the Detroit skipper with being a mentor. Leyland gave Collins his first big league coaching job in 1992 with Pittsburgh. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
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| Beitrag vom 07.08.2016 - 11:41 |
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