-This one was a bit too close for comfort but thanks to some clutch play in the game's final four minutes, the Toronto Raptors escaped with a 109 to 104 win over the Washington Wizards tonight.
-Again, the club was without Chris Bosh so needed some balanced scoring to get a W and like last night's victory over the Nets, the Dinos did just that. They had six players score in double figures and were led by Jarrett Jack with 23. Hedo Turkoglu had his second straight solid game, Andrea Bargnani chipped in 18, and Antoine Wright was stellar with 19 off the pine.
-For Washington, it was the Andray Blatche show. Blatche had 24 points, 6 rebounds and 3 blocks and single-handily got the Wizards back in this one early in the 3rd quarter. He also got some balanced assistance as Javale McGee, AL Thornton, Josh Howard and Randy Foye all scored 10 or more points.
-Despite winning both games sans-Bosh, here's hoping CB4 returns for the Raps' next match. Without him tonight Toronto looked lost on offence at times, and had Jarrett Jack not taken over late in the fourth, this would likely have been an ugly loss. The Raptors had no answer for Andray Blatche, played some horrific defense most of the game, and after solid first halves, the scoring from players like Andrea and Jose dried up. Washington got numerous second-chance opportunities as well and eventually ran up a 10 point lead with minutes to go.
-However the Raps showed just why they've been one of the league's best since January, locking in defensively while executing efficiently on offense. Turk and Jack did their damage on O while on D, Bargnani had three huge blocks to keep the Wizards at bay. By the time the clock wound down, Toronto was left standing with the W.
-While the Wiz aren't exactly the Blazers or Cavs, Toronto's next two opponents, this was still a good win. Toronto lost a 10 point lead, got down by the same margin late, and yet charged back to get their 31st win putting them only two wins shy of their total all last season.