-It wasn't pretty at times, but the Toronto Raptors outscored the Minnesota Timberwolves when it counted late in the fourth quarter en route to a 97 to 87 win. The win stopped a two-game slide for the Dinos, and kicked off their back-to-back-to back with a W.
-This win was brought to you by the letter A...as in Amir and Andrea. Amir Johnson put on a hustle clinic despite having flu-like symptoms this morning. He held Kevin Love to 3 of 16 from the field, all the while posting 19 points and 11 rebounds, 8 of which were on the offensive glass. Andrea was no slouch on the boards either, missing a double double by a single rebound, and doing the bulk of the team's scoring with 31 points. Stir in some Leandro Barbosa for O (13 points), some James Johnson on D (5 rebounds and 4 blocks) and the usual dose of Jose Calderon (14 points, 6 assists, 1 turnover) and you've got a pretty good recipe for a win.
-Minnesota though did their best to help the Raps out, making some puzzling offensive decisions and turning it over 15 times. As well, they were held to only 34 per cent shooting from the field and scored only one field goal from about the seven-minute mark until the final minute of the game. Jose Juan Barea had 16 to lead the Wolves, but he wasn't on the court in the game's final minutes.
-With the win, the Raps have a good chance to get two-straight W's as Toronto now heads on the road to take on the slightly discombobulated Washington Wizards. The Wiz haven't won a game yet this season, but considering Raptors' coach Dwane Casey played Bargnani, Calderon, DeRozan and Amir Johnson an average of 39 minutes tonight, this next one could prove to be extremely challenging for the Dinos.