
8-5
4-8*Click on the logos for boxscoresRaps Outlast Nets in Tripe OT Thriller (148-141 Raptors)November 22, 2009It was simpy a war of attrition that allowed the Toronto Raptors to come out on top. The three extended periods meant that the Raptors were forced to dig deeper into their bench than usual to keep their starters fresh while getting some nice surprises when some of their young prospects got extended minutes. "Our young players off the bench deserve as much of the praise as the starters," Raptors head coach Jay Triano said. "We got some really good minutes from Crittenton and O'Bryant and that allowed Bosh and Calderon to keep their energy up throughout all those overtimes."
Patrick O'Bryant was seldomly used throughout the season but saw some crucial minutes during the first two overtimes as he collected his first ever double-double of the season. "I'm happy for Pat," said teammate Rodney Carney. "I've been in his position before; not getting minutes can be tough on a guy but he's kept a good attitude about it."
The game throughout was essentially a battle between all-stars Chris Bosh and Devin Harris, with each player helping their team swing the momentum back and forth for their respective teams. The Raptors were up by 1 point with 1:24 left to play, but Bobby Simmons hit a corner pocket three ball to bring the game give the Nets a 2 point advantage. Despite the clutch jumper by Simmons, the Raptors had some big plays down the stretch with Calderon knocking down a jumper to tie the game up and Chuck Terrell picked off an errant pass for an easy coast-to-coast layup. Chris Bosh was also fouled within the last 47 seconds of the game and hit two freethrows to make it 101-97 in favour of the Raptors. The Nets simply wouldn't go away as Courtney Lee hit a jumpshot while Bosh missed an easy floater at the other end. This allowed the Nets to rally for one final baby hook by Sean Wiliams, tying the score at 101 a piece when regulation ended.
It wasn't until the third overtime period when the Nets seemingly collapsed from the fatigue. The Raptors went full throttle in the third extra period as they got an immediate 7 point lead within the first two minutes from a Shawn Marion three point play and two consecutive Rodney Carney dunks. "We simply outlasted them," said Andrea Bargnani, who showed ice water in his veins by knocking in a big three with 9.5 seconds left in the second overtime to tie the game up for another extra session. "It's not a good way to win a game but we'll take it."

Patrick O'Bryant gave Bosh and Bargnani an extended breather with his great play off the bench.Notes:-The Nets have a well balanced attack led by sophomore big man Brook Lopez's 15.8ppg. All starters score under 15 points per game but more than 11 ppg.
-The Nets are in a similar position to the Raptors last season, where they shoot a high freethrow percentage (third best in the league), but are second last in attempts. Ironically, the Raptors are 4th in the league in free throw attempts this season, receiving a huge boost from Chuck Terrell's slashing ability.
-Brook Lopez gave the Nets a scare as he injured his knee on a collision with Chris Bosh with 3:17 left in the fourth quarter but would return to play in the last two overtimes.
Player of the Game:
Jose Calderon
Pts - 22
Rebs - 5
Asts - 8
FG - 9/15
Stls - 5
9-9
8-6*Click on the logos for boxscoresDetroit's D Too Much for Toronto (109-93 Pistons)November 27, 2009When Chris Bosh performs at a high level, his teammates usually help pick up the slack as well and the Raptors can usually come up with a 'W'. This night, however, was not the case. The Detroit Pistons showed the Raptors the meaning of team basketball, allowing Bosh to go for 28-10 while locking down all of the other players on the floor for Toronto.
"It was pretty frustrating to have my teammates be shut down like that," Bosh said. "I think we play our best ball when everyone's playing well. That didn't happen tonight."
The Raptors had failed to shoot above 40% for three of the four quarters, as Detroit's backcourt hounded and disrupted Toronto's offense greatly. The Raptors at the same time looked discouraged to play defense when their offense wasn't clicking, allowing Detroit to shoot 65% in the opening and final quarters.
Detroit immediately took control of the game and led by double digits for most of the second quarter. The Raptors would battle back by playing some defense themselves in the third quarter, getting as close as 67-62. The Raptors' offense refused to heat up which simply allowed the Pistons to blow them out in the fourth.

Detroit's stingy defense did not allow anything easy in the paint.Notes:-This is the start of Toronto's second back to back of the season... The first back to back was coincidentally against Detroit which was another loss for the Raptors on Nov. 8.
-Even though McDyess is nearing the twilight of his career, the power forward has been averaging 15-10 while also being ranked 2nd in the league in offensive rebounding and 5th in total rebounds.
Player of the Game:
Richard Hamilton
Pts - 21
Rebs - 5
Asts - 1
FG - 9/19
3PT - 3/4
10-6
8-7*Click on the logos for boxscoresHot Shooting Stings the Raptors (109-97 Hornets)November 28, 2009Today's game was a classic example of Toronto's inability to defend. The New Orleans Hornets from start to finish bullied the Raptors in both the paint and the outside, showcasing perfectly the Hornets' inside-outside attack led by forwards David West and Peja Stojakovic.
The Raptors were able to keep up with the Hornets' pace in the early going, trading shots early. New Orleans however began to make adjustments to their game plan, playing a zone defense to crowd Bosh and Bargnani in the paint, which has been an achilles heel of the Raptors that has been exploited time and time again. "We gotta start making our shots man," said Javaris Crittenton, who had a nice game off the bench with 10 points and 5 assists despite the poor shooting by the Raptors from beyond the arc. "When we can't get the ball to Bosh we are in for a lot of trouble."
The Hornets would take a 55-49 lead by halftime after going through a stretch where they hit 9 of 10 shots. Toronto managed to counteract this in the start of the second half by playing small ball, sliding Marion over to power forward and Bosh to center which enabled a run for the Raptors to retake a 62-59 lead. Chris Paul would not let his team falter though, as he hit back to back threes to give the Hornets the lead once again. David West's offensive rebounding netted him 12 points in the fourth quarter as he helped push Toronto back for another double-digit loss.

In addition to creating his own shot, Chris Paul kept his teammates hot with his stellar slashing ability.Notes:-Peja Stojakovic has enjoyed a resurgent season, becoming an all-around stat stuffer as he is leading the Hornets in scoring with 20.1 points per game to go along with 6.8 rebounds per game and 3.7 assists per game.
-This marks the third time that long-time fan-favourite Morris Peterson returned to the Air Canada Centre. He was greeted with a standing ovation but failed to play any major minutes for the Hornets.
-The Raptors have yet to win a game this season when they play in a back-to-back
Player of the Game:
David West
Pts - 24
Rebs - 11
Asts - 0
FG - 11/14
Blks - 3
9-7
5-9*Click on the logos for boxscoresBargnani Helps Raptors Battle Back in Overtime (125-120 Raptors)November 30, 2009Andrea Bargnani once in a while likes to play the role of Chris Bosh for his team, but Jose Calderon was the one who finished the game as the hero. The seven foot Italian center put the Raptors on his back as Bosh struggled to find his stroke against former defensive player of the year Marcus Camby, while Calderon nailed big shots down the stretch to give the Raptors a come from behind victory.
Bargnani helped the Raptors weather a terrible second quarter where they only made 4 shots on 22 attempts as the Clippers jumped off to an uncharacterstic 57-41 lead by halftime after Thornton scored 18 points by the half. In typical Clippers fashion, the fourth quarter saw the momentum shift to favour the Raptors, or rather, to Andrea Bargnani. Il Mago scorched the Clippers' front court in the final quarter, orchestrating an 11-4 run to bring the Raptors to within 3 points. The Clippers managed to fight back with a miniature run of their own, closing the gap back to 99-89 points after a Camby three point play with 2:37 to go. Bargnani then sparked another 7-0 run by nailing a short up and under in the post and a free throw line jumper which was followed by Chuck Terrell free throws.
Things began to look bleak as Thornton and Gordon had unanswered buckets to give the Clippers a 107-104 lead with 13.5 seconds left, but a Jose Calderon three pointer with 0.8 seconds on the clock managed to send the game into overtime. Calderon also nailed another three point dagger with a minute left in overtime to give the Raptors the lead down the stretch.
"That's the Jose we're used to seeing," Bosh said. "Andrea picked up the slack and kept the game close while Jose nailed the big shots. We needed this one after the two other losses this week."

Thornton was impressive around the rim, but it just wasn't enough for the Clippers.Notes:-Jose Calderon and Baron Davis are fairly close with their assist averages, with Calderon averaging 7.9 and Davis averaging 7.2
-This game extends the Clippers' losing streak to 3 games.
-Although they are not the worst team record-wise right now, the Clippers are dead last in the league in assists, scoring and three point percentage.
Player of the Game:
Andrea Bargnani
Pts - 32
Rebs - 6
Asts - 3
FG - 14/28
3PT - 4/8Raptor of the Week
Jose CalderonJose has managed to somewhat snap out of his shooting funk to post some pretty solid numbers this week. With most players on the team having an up and down week, Jose has been relatively consistent throughout. Jose has also hit some big shots down the stretch in the Raptors' wins against the Nets and the Clippers. Other than racking up a ton of turnovers in 2 of the 4 games played, Calderon has played his best week yet this season.
PPG - 18.8
RPG - 3.3
APG - 8.3
FG% - 51%
3pt% - 50%*Note: These are only averages for the week.