Raptors get physical to blast Knicks

Agence France-Presse

This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.

The Raptors' third win in a row improves their record to 27-13 in the Eastern Conference standings

PHYSICAL. A more physical Toronto side effectively seals the victory in the third quarter, outscoring New York, 27-8. DeMar DeRozan leads the way with 23 points. File photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images/AFP

TORONTO, Canada – DeMar DeRozan scored 23 points as a physical Toronto Raptors outmuscled the New York Knicks 116-101 on Sunday, January 15 (Monday in Manila).

DeRozan added 5 assists and 5 rebounds for Toronto but it was the no-nonsense defensive effort from his team that delighted Raptors coach Dwane Casey.

“I was really proud of the way the starters came out and set the tone, especially starting the third quarter,” Casey said.

“(We) came out, set the tone defensively and built a 30-plus (point) lead, so my hats off to those guys.”

Kyle Lowry, who finished with 16 points, 9 assists and 4 rebounds, for Toronto, agreed.

“I just think we got more physical,” Lowry said of the defense. “I think we started to get more physical after the first part of the first quarter and we just kept going.

“The bigs did a good job of rebounding and we got out and were able to run.”

Toronto effectively sealed victory in the third quarter, outscoring the Knicks 27-8.

The Raptors’ third win in a row improved their record to 27-13 in the Eastern Conference standings. The Canadian franchise has now defeated the Knicks in 5 straight games.

“We weren’t getting the stops, were not scoring, had some looks, but when you’re not scoring, that’s when you have to focus defensively and say, ‘OK we may not be scoring, but we can stay in this game with defense’,” Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek said.

“We weren’t good enough to play any defense and it just ballooned out from there.”

Carmelo Anthony led the Knicks with 18 points, with Justin Holiday adding 17 and Derrick Rose 16 with 3 assists.

It was a fourth loss in 5 games for New York, who have a losing 18-23 record at the midpoint of the season.

Rose, who was fined last week for his mysterious no-show, said he was at a loss to explain the team’s woes. 

“Everybody has to analyze what’s going on,” Rose said.

“I really can’t tell what it is. Can’t put a finger on it. I don’t know what it is. First time being in this (situation).” – Rappler.com

Add a comment

Sort by

There are no comments yet. Add your comment to start the conversation.

Summarize this article with AI

How does this make you feel?

Loading
Download the Rappler App!