James, struggling Cavs routed again, Raptors romp 133-99

By IAN HARRISON
Associated Press

TORONTO (AP) -- LeBron James isn't enjoying the view lately, watching the end of blowout losses from the Cleveland Cavaliers' bench.

James and his struggling Cavaliers absorbed their most-lopsided rout of the season, overwhelmed by the Toronto Raptors 133-99 on Thursday night.

The Cavaliers have dropped six of eight dating to a Christmas Day defeat at defending champion Golden State. James scored 26 points in this loss while Isaiah Thomas missed his first 11 shots.

"I don't know where it kind of went wrong or what happened," James said. "We've got to try to pick it back up and find it."

After losing to Minnesota 127-99 on Monday, the Cavaliers fell by an even bigger margin. Toronto's 133 points were the most by any Cavaliers opponent this season, and marked the third straight game that Cleveland has allowed at least 127.

So, what has been James' biggest beef with Cleveland's last two losses?

"That I haven't played in the fourth quarter," he said, adding his team is getting "tore up."

Kevin Love, who scored 10 points, said he's confident the Cavs can turn it around in time to reach the finals for a fourth straight season.

"We have enough talent here to get over that hump and make a lot of good things happen," Love said. "Right now it's just tough to see the light at the end of the tunnel but it is there. We will get out of it and we will get better."

Fred VanVleet scored a career-high 22 points, Jonas Valanciunas had 15 points and a season-high 18 rebounds and the Raptors overcame the absences of two starters.

C.J.Miles scored 16 points, Pascal Siakam and Norm Powell each had 14 and DeMar DeRozan 13 for the Raptors, who were without point guard Kyle Lowry (bruised tailbone) and forward Serge Ibaka (suspension). Jakob Poeltl had 12 points and 12 rebounds for the Raptors.

VanVleet made six of eight 3-point attempts as the Raptors connected on a season-high 18 shots from beyond the arc.

"I was really proud of the way he came to play," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said.

Toronto's 12-game home winning streak was snapped in Tuesday's loss to Miami, but the Raptors bounced back in their first meeting with Cleveland since the Cavaliers swept the Raptors out of the second round of the playoffs last May.

Thomas connecting on a short jumper at 7:22 of the third quarter for his first basket. He finished 2 for 15 and went 0 for 6 from 3-point range. Playing for the fourth time this season as he returns from a right hip injury, Thomas scored four points in 24 minutes.

"He'll be fine," Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said. "He's going to have to work out some kinks, but he'll be fine."

Lowry missed his second straight game after he was injured in a heavy fall in overtime of Monday's win at Brooklyn. Lowry participated in shootaround Thursday morning but is still too sore to play.

Ibaka served a one-game suspension for throwing a punch at Miami's James Johnson in Tuesday's home loss to the Heat.

Leading 30-24 after one quarter, the Raptors extended their lead in the second thanks to their bench. Siakam scored 10 points and VanVleet had eight as Toronto led 65-40 at halftime.

TIP-INS

Cavaliers: Thomas missed all 10 of his field goal attempts in the first half. ... G Derrick Rose who has been out since Nov. 7 with an ankle injury, will not play Friday at Indiana. G Iman Shumpert, out since Nov. 20 with a knee injury, is also expected to miss Friday's game. ... Cleveland is 11-11 on the road.

Raptors: Outscored Cleveland 76-48 in bench points. ... Outrebounded the Cavs 63-35.

RECORD-BREAKING START

Toronto's 29 wins through 40 games are the most in franchise history. The Raptors started 28-13 in 2016-17.

END OF THE LINE

Thomas failed to make at least one 3-pointer for the first time in 60 games. It had been the second-longest streak in the NBA behind Golden State's Klay Thompson (95).

UP NEXT

Cavaliers: Thomas is expected to rest when Cleveland concludes a back-to-back by visiting Indiana on Friday. The Pacers have won both meetings with the Cavs this season.

Raptors: Host Golden State on Saturday. Toronto has lost seven straight to the Warriors.

Ellington scores winning basket as Heat beat Raptors 90-89

By IAN HARRISON
Associated Press

TORONTO (AP) -- Wayne Ellington leads Miami in 3-pointers, which made Tuesday's game-winning basket a bit of a surprise.

Ellington converted a go-ahead driving layup with less than a second remaining, and the Heat stopped Toronto's 12-game home winning streak with a 90-89 victory over the Raptors.

"That's probably the last thing anybody would think that he would do is put the ball on the floor," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "I think it caught everybody by surprise, including me."

It was the only basket of the second half for Ellington, who finished with 15 points.

Ellington said he considered shooting after catching the inbounds pass from Goran Dragic, but decided to drive along the baseline past Toronto's Pascal Siakam before laying the ball in off the glass.

"I looked at the rim and I saw him just charging hard," Ellington said. "Obviously, that's what they wanted to take away from me, was that 3-ball in the corner. I was able to get loose, man, and get around him."

Like his coach, Dragic also was surprised when Ellington didn't launch a 3.

"I thought he was going to shoot it but he made a great read," Dragic said.

Dragic had 24 points and matched his career high with 12 rebounds as Miami extended its season-best winning streak to five. Bam Adebayo had 16 points and a career-high 15 rebounds and Hassan Whiteside collected 13 points and 15 boards for the Heat, who had dropped their previous five visits to Toronto.

The Raptors were without point guard Kyle Lowry after the three-time All-Star bruised his tailbone during Monday's overtime win at Brooklyn.

DeMar DeRozan scored 25 points as the Raptors lost for the first time in six games and failed to break the franchise record for consecutive home victories. Serge Ibaka finished with 11 after he was ejected in the second half.

"We let them get easy points," DeRozan said.

It was Toronto's first home loss since Nov. 5 against Washington, a game in which Lowry was ejected early in the second quarter. The Raptors are 14-2 at home.

Ibaka and Miami's James Johnson were ejected after trading punches at 7:50 of the third quarter. The skirmish began when the two started shoving one another while waiting for the ball to be inbounded under the Miami basket. Officials reviewed the incident before giving both players technical fouls and ejections.

"It certainly felt like there was something at stake from the very tip, and that's the way it should be in this league," Spoelstra said. "There was a physicality, an edge to the game."

Tempers flared again after the final whistle, with DeRozan appearing to yell at Dragic as the teams left the court.

"Nothing special," Dragic said. "Just exchanged some words. No big deal."

Miami guard Tyler Johnson, who had started the previous 10 games, was unavailable after he strained his left shoulder at shootaround. His status for Wednesday's game at Indiana was not known.

TIP-INS

Heat: Miami outrebounded Toronto 64-37. ... Improved to 14-3 when holding opponents below 100 points. ... Ellington had three of Miami's four 3-pointers.

Raptors: The Raptors also won 12 straight at home from Jan. 18 to Mar 4, 2016. ... The loss ended Toronto's streak of 12 straight wins over Eastern Conference opponents.

KEEPING THEM CLOSE

It was Miami's second straight one-point win. The Heat beat Utah 103-102 on Sunday thanks to Josh Richardson's layup with five seconds left. Miami's previous win was an overtime victory over the Knicks.

UP NEXT

Heat: Visit Indiana on Wednesday. The Heat have lost 10 straight road games against the Pacers

Raptors: Begin a two-game stretch against recent NBA finalists by hosting Cleveland on Thursday. Golden State will visit Toronto on Saturday.

Raptors overcome strong effort from Suns' bench

PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns' reserves kept the game interesting, but the Toronto Raptors' starting lineup showcased too much firepower.

DeMar DeRozan scored 18 of his 37 points in the third quarter, and Toronto's starters totaled 99 points in a 115-109 win over the Suns on Wednesday.

The Raptors wrapped up a 3-1 Western Conference road trip.

"We had to fight hard for this win, and it's something we can learn from without it hurting us," said DeRozan, who recorded his sixth 30-point game of the season and 86th as a Raptor, second to Vince Carter (91) in team history. "We've had good third quarters this season, and the starters come out and get things rolling."

The Raptors got 21 points and 13 rebounds from Serge Ibaka, plus 20 points and 11 rebounds from Jonas Valanciunas. Kyle Lowry added 12 on 3-of-12 shooting, but it was enough for Toronto to overcome 55 points from Phoenix's second unit, including a career-high 32 points and seven 3-pointers from Troy Daniels.

"We talked about (Daniels) before the game, and he just shot lights out," Toronto coach Dwane Casey said after his team followed up wins over the Memphis Grizzlies and Sacramento Kings by sweeping the season series from the Suns for only the fourth time in team history. "We couldn't get consecutive stops and kept giving them confidence. But we found a way, executed down the stretch, got the line and made our free throws."

With the starters resting, Toronto let most of a 15-point, third-quarter lead slip away. Alex Len's basket capped a 12-0 Phoenix run to pull the Suns within 92-89 with 9:22 left.

"I felt like if we could just keep it to 10 points at the end of the third they'd have to go to their bench and that's where we can kind of claw back a little and we did," Phoenix interim coach Jay Triano said. "We had a couple of little lapses here and there, and we had a tough time with DeMar, who's an All-Star and tough to guard. They had more guys playing better than we did."

The Suns got as close as 111-109 in the final minute but the Raptors (18-8) made five of six free throws in the final 30 seconds to hold them off.

Daniels made seven of his 10 3-point attempts. He has 60 3-pointers this season, third behind Kyle Korver of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Wayne Ellington of the Miami Heat among NBA reserves.

"My teammates were finding me," Daniels said. "I had a couple go in early, which is very important, and the rest were just falling."

The Suns (9-21) lost their fifth in a row and are 0-4 since losing star Devin Booker to an adductor injury. Greg Monroe added 17 points and 11 rebounds, and TJ Warren had 17 points but needed 15 shots to get them.

The Raptors hit five of seven 3-pointers in the first quarter, and DeRozan and Lowry combined for seven assists on Toronto's 11 baskets. Valanciunas and Ibaka combined for 18 points in the quarter, and a 3-pointer by C.J. Miles with 31 seconds left gave Toronto a 37-31 lead.

"Our big played great," Lowry said. "They got a chance to play against their bigs, and they got the better of them tonight. They scored and rebounded the ball extremely well."

Phoenix's reserves outscored Toronto 29-13 in the first half and got a big lift from Daniels. He had nine of his 14 first-half points from three 3-pointers, the last one capping a 7-0 run to give Phoenix a 46-46 lead with 6:16 left in the half.

The Raptors came right back with an 11-2 run, and Lowry's first two points on two free throws with 17.3 seconds left gave Toronto a 58-53 lead at the half.

NOTES: With four injured players, the Suns received an injury exemption and signed G Isaiah Canaan to a contract. Canaan, who did not play Wednesday, has appeared with three other NBA teams, most recently the Houston Rockets. Canaan can play the point, where depth has been a problem since Phoenix traded Eric Bledsoe to the Milwaukee Bucks on Nov. 7. ... Phoenix C Tyson Chandler missed the game due to personal reasons. ... Toronto has played the fewest home games in the NBA (10) and won't have a road trip longer than three games or a road game west of the Central time zone for the rest of the year. ... Suns interim coach Jay Triano was 87-142 in three seasons as head coach of the Raptors (2008-11).

Booker injured in Suns' loss to Raptors

TORONTO -- A tough night for the Phoenix Suns became that much more difficult Tuesday night when their star guard Devin Booker was carried from the court with 2:40 left in the fourth quarter.

The first diagnosis was a strained left adductor.

It was the final blow of a long, six-game road trip for the Suns, who finished the trip at 2-4 after losing 126-113 to the Toronto Raptors.

"I don't know how serious, or when we'll be able to evaluate," Suns interim coach Jay Triano said.

Booker, who scored a season-best 46 points Monday in the victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, had 19 points, eight rebounds and five rebounds against the Raptors.

"I hope it's nothing serious," Suns reserve forward Jared Dudley said. "Good thing we have a day off tomorrow. I hope it's just a cramp and he'll be OK. I haven't been back there yet (in the trainers' room), but I think he'll be fine."

"He's obviously one of the great young players in this league," center Greg Monroe said. "He's had an outstanding year, so you definitely don't want to see him get injured and you don't want to see anybody get injured at any point."

Kyle Lowry scored 20 points and added 10 assists and six rebounds for the Raptors (15-7) who have won four games in a row.

The Raptors entered the fourth quarter leading by 18 points.

The margin reached 19 before a Suns surge cut the lead to 10 on a 3-pointer by Dudley with 8:44 to play.

Lowry pushed Toronto's lead to 14 when he made a 3-pointer with 5:18 left.

"I thought we fought well, I just don't think we stayed mentally locked in," Triano said.

DeMar DeRozan finished with 20 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for Toronto. Serge Ibaka chipped in with 19 points, OG Anunoby had 16, C.J. Miles added 15, and Jakob Poeltl and Fred VanVleet each had 13.

"We tried to mix it up," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. "We tried to mix up the blitzes, we tried to mix up the switches, matchups. You don't stop a young man like (Booker). I thought we just made him work for what he got ... He ended up with 19 which is a far cry from what he had (Monday) night. I'll take that, I commend our guys, we did a good job we messed up on some rotation after our blitzes. He didn't score but he did a good job of finding people behind, we did not do a good job of finding the roller. That's something we have to improve on."

Alex Len added 14 points and seven rebounds, and Troy Daniels and Josh Jackson each contributed 13 points for the Suns (9-17). Monroe scored 11 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, and Dudley scored 12.

Suns forward TJ Warren was assessed two technical fouls with 7:58 to play in the third quarter to earn an ejection from the game. He had 11 points and one rebound in 23 minutes.

The Suns picked up four technical fouls in the game overall.

"I thought we just lost our composure," Dudley said. "Frustration can set in, especially some of our young players, they haven't earned the right, you know. Obviously, you aren't going to get the calls. We're a young team that's not a winning team so we're going to have to fight the uphill battles and sometimes that happens. ... Hopefully, it was a learning experience. Last year, we had a lot of technicals."

The Raptors led by as many as 17 points before finishing the first quarter with a 36-23 lead with Lowry scoring 13. The Suns had seven turnovers in the quarter and the Raptors had none.

The Raptors led 55-46 at halftime. The Suns had a 23-19 advantage in the quarter, ending a string of 12 straight games in which the Raptors had outscored the opposition in the second quarter. Toronto made seven turnovers in the quarter and Phoenix had three.

Toronto had 18 turnovers for the game and Phoenix had 17.

Two free throws by DeRozan had the lead at 17 with 4:23 left in the third. The Raptors led 97-79 after the third quarter.

The Raptors had 30 assists.

"I think it makes it a lot easier, which makes it a lot more fun," DeRozan said. "Everybody gets a chance to touch the ball, you don't necessarily have to work so hard and it's fun. ... With that, we still missed a lot of shots but it's something we're still learning, we're still trying to get better at every time we practice, every time we play and look at film to understand what we did wrong and what we could do better."

NOTES: Suns C Tyson Chandler (rest) did not play Tuesday after recording seven points and 12 rebounds in a season-high 37 minutes Monday during a victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. Greg Monroe started at center Tuesday and Alex Len was backup. ... Suns interim coach Jay Triano became the first Canadian to be an NBA coach when he led the Raptors from 2008-2011. ... The Raptors will start a four-game trip Friday against the Memphis Grizzlies. ... The Suns will host the Washington Wizards on Thursday.

DeRozan scores 27 as Raptors beat Rockets 129-113

By KRISTIE REIKEN
Associated Press

HOUSTON (AP) — The Toronto Raptors have struggled to close out games against good teams this season.

They solved that Tuesday night, getting 27 points from DeMar DeRozan while holding off the Rockets 129-113 despite a couple late runs by Houston.

Just as important, DeRozan thinks he knows the key for Toronto holding leads going forward.

“Liking this feeling,” he said. “You’ve got to love this feeling so you don’t got to go out there having too many of them close games that you lost, feeling upset, got to wait until the next game. You’ve got to want to continue to have this feeling and that should work out everything else.”

Toronto led by 12 at halftime and had to repeatedly shut down rally attempts from the Rockets.

“Consistency in this league is a hard thing to grab, and that’s what we’ve got to reach for, grab for each and every night,” Toronto coach Dwane Casey said. “If we could bottle tonight, the energy, the toughness, the togetherness we had tonight, it (would be) special.”

James Harden had 38 points and made 19 of 19 foul shots for the Rockets, who ended a six-game winning streak.

“We weren’t sharp,” Houston coach Mike D’Antoni said. “Sometimes you let down and it’s hard to turn it back on. We tried, we got close in the second half, but we just didn’t have enough.”

Houston scored six straight points, including three free throws from Harden, to make it 108-103 with about 7 1/2 minutes left.

Delon Wright made a free throw for the Raptors soon after that, and OG Anunoby connected for Toronto’s first field goal in more than three minutes on a 3-pointer with 6:25 remaining. After Wright’s layup, Kyle Lowry stole the ball from Harden, and DeRozan finished on the other end with a dunk to make it 116-103.

Harden got Houston going again with a four-point play. The free throw was his 19th, setting a franchise record for most foul shots without a miss in a game.

DeRozan and Serge Ibaka had back-to-back dunks after Harden’s big play to make it 120-107 with about three minutes left and send many of the home fans toward the exits.

Harden had 11 assists and six rebounds. He has scored at least 20 points and had seven or more assists in every game this season.

The Raptors scored the first five points of the second half to make it 81-64 and pushed their lead to 19 points midway through the third on Lowry’s 3-pointer.

Toronto led by 21 before Houston made five straight points, capped by a 3-point play by Tarik Black. That was the start of a nice run for the Rockets, and they used a 9-3 spurt after that to cut the lead to 97-87. Harden made four points in that span, and Eric Gordon capped it with a layup.

Houston led by eight points during the first half, but the Raptors used a 45-point second quarter to take a 76-64 edge into halftime.

TIP-INS

Raptors: Norman Powell sat out after leaving Sunday’s game at Boston with a hip pointer. ... Lowry, a former Rocket, added 19 points and 10 assists. ... Anunoby scored 16 points.

Rockets: Nene missed his second straight game with a sprained right foot. ... Harden received a technical after a shot in the first quarter when he complained about the lack of a foul call. ... Trevor Ariza finished with 20 points and eight rebounds. ... P.J. Tucker got two technical fouls and was ejected in the third quarter.

UP NEXT

Raptors: Visit New Orleans on Wednesday night.

Rockets: Visit Phoenix on Thursday night.

DeRozan as 25 and Toronto downs Portland 99-85

By ANNE M. PETERSON
Associated Press

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — DeMar DeRozan credited Toronto’s second unit for Portland’s ugly second quarter.

The Trail Blazers were held to just six total points — Evan Turner’s layup and four free throws — in the period and Toronto went on to win 99-85 on Monday night.

“They did something big for us holding them to one field goal throughout the whole quarter,” DeRozan said about the bench. “It gave us a great opportunity to go out there and pull out this win.”

DeRozan had 25 points to lead the Raptors, who were up by as many as 26 points. Kyle Lowry added a season-high 19 points and added 10 rebounds.

“Man, they did a great job of cutting off everything,” Lowry said about the second unit. “It was such an ugly slugfest in the second quarter.”

The win extended Toronto’s winning streak over Portland to five straight games.

Damian Lillard had a season-high 36 points for the Blazers, who got within 13 in the final quarter. CJ McCollum, who had scored 20 or more points in each of Portland’s first six games this season, had 16.

Toronto was without center Serge Ibaka, who is averaging 15 points a game this season, because of swelling in his right knee. The knee started to bother him following a victory over the Lakers in Los Angeles on Friday. Jacob Poetl took his place in the starting lineup.

The Raptors also missed Jonas Valanciunas for a fourth straight game with a left ankle sprain.

Toronto’s focused on defense throughout, coach Dwane Casey said.

“I mean, you’re not going to stop a great player like Lillard or McCollum,” Casey said. “But our whole emphasis was to make them work for every inch of the court.”

DeRozan had 15 points in the first quarter and the teams were knotted at 29 going into the second. DeRozan led the Raptors with 24 points in the 101-92 victory over the Lakers.

The Blazers went cold in the second quarter. Really cold. They went 0-for-16 from the field until Turner’s layup with 5 seconds left before the half. Portland’s other four points in the quarter came from free throws and the Raptors led 54-35 at the break.

The Blazers’ six total points were a franchise low for the second quarter.

“It wasn’t like they were unstoppable,” Lillard said. “They were scoring and we weren’t.”

Going back into the first quarter, the Blazers missed 20 straight shots over the miserable stretch.

“Brutal,” Coach Terry Stotts said about the stretch. “It was tough. I felt bad for them.”

Lillard hit a pair of consecutive 3-pointers and a layup in the third quarter, but the Blazers couldn’t make up much ground. The Raptors led 81-61 going into the final period.

Portland went on a 10-5 run to open the fourth and close the gap to 86-71 with 8:55 left. Lillard added a 16-footer to cut the margin to 13.

Portland was coming off a 114-107 win at home over the Suns on Saturday.

TIP INS

Raptors: It was the fourth game of a season-long six game road trip for Toronto. ... The Raptors won both games against the Blazers last season.

Trail Blazers: Portland’s lowest point total for any quarter is five points. ... It was the last of a four-game home stand for the Blazers. ... Meyers Leonard is currently out because of right lateral ankle sprain. ... It was the 76th 30-point game of Lillard’s career.

NOGUERIA’S NIGHT: Lucas Nogueira scored a season-high 17 points for the Raptors, along with nine rebounds. He had five blocked shots

“He’s engaged and he’s into it and we know what he can do,” Lowry said. “He just has to do it consistently. That’s the biggest thing I say to him every night, get out there and be a shot blocker and be dominate on the defensive end.”

QUOTABLE: “The first quarter was really nice and the second quarter was really bad.” --Stotts.

UP NEXT

Toronto plays the Nuggets in Denver on Wednesday.

The Trail Blazers visit the Utah Jazz on Wednesday.

Curry, Durant hit key 3s late, Warriors hold off Raptors

By JANIE McCAULEY
Associated Press

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The defending NBA champions are working to rediscover their defense. Not to mention their basic rebounding fundamentals of boxing out and ability to avoid silly fouls.

They barely beat the scrappy Raptors to avoid an 0-2 home start.

“Our defense has been horrible,” Draymond Green said.

Stephen Curry hit a go-ahead 3-pointer from the top with 31.9 seconds left on the way to 30 points, and the sloppy Warriors held off Toronto 117-112 on Wednesday night.

Kevin Durant’s 3-pointer with 1:02 remaining tied the game at 112, then he found Curry for the 3 that made the difference.

“A 4-year-old up in the stands probably could have seen that we should have been boxing out,” Durant said of the 17 offensive rebounds surrendered. “... We don’t want to build bad habits and Coach is doing a good job of correcting us when we make mistakes.”

Durant finished with 29 points on 11-for-20 shooting, Klay Thompson scored 22 points with four 3-pointers, and Curry capitalized with a huge second half.

DeMar DeRozan scored 24 points. He drove through the paint for a dunk with 3:53 to play then hit a key jumper a minute later to put Toronto in position after Curry, Durant and Thompson each missed key 3s down the stretch.

Green had 15 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and two steals but also six of Golden State’s 17 turnovers.

Jakob Poeltl had 11 of his 14 rebounds on the offensive glass.

“It’s a focus thing,” Green said.

Curry scored 13 of his points in the third quarter and the defending champions avoided falling to 0-2 at home after losing their opener to Houston on Oct. 17. He made an off-balance layup with 1:28 to go then Golden State made a stop on the other end before Durant’s big 3.

“We had ourselves in a great position and we made some key mental mistakes that cost us,” DeRozan said. “Nothing went our way, everything went their way in that last minute.”

Pascal Siakam scored 20 points as Toronto lost its 13th in a row at Golden State and seventh straight in the series. Serge Ibaka added 15 points and Kyle Lowry 14 points and nine assists.

Thompson had two 3s and Durant another from downtown during a 9-0 run late in the second quarter and Thompson another in the waning seconds that put Golden State up 61-53 at the break.

BELL’S BACKBOARD DUNK

Rookie Jordan Bell’s dunk that featured a toss to himself off the backboard Saturday at Memphis drew some debate.

Coach Steve Kerr spoke to the first-year forward out of Oregon, whose play had Curry and Durant’s jaws dropping.

“I told him after it happened, I said be ready for them to retaliate. He had a bewildered look on his face. I think the issue is you’ve got old-school people, players on our own team, like Shaun Livingston, David West,” Kerr said. “The young guys are like, ‘Man, that was cool.’ I’m sort of in the middle, I never want to embarrass our opponent.”

LGBT PRIDE NIGHT

Kerr made a heartfelt message about loving and accepting your neighbor as the Warriors hosted LGBT Pride Night. Warriors President and COO Rick Welts was the first openly gay NBA executive.

Kerr’s remarks:

“There’s never been a more important time in our country to respect the person next to you, regardless of race, creed, color, sexual preference, sexual identity. I’m really encouraged by my kids’ experience here in California growing up, just in terms of acceptance. It seems like the young generation is learning more and more about we all just are who we are. We’re all individuals. What makes our country great is our diversity. The fact that we can respect each other and work together and embrace each other, I think it’s an important night for us. We want to welcome everybody from the LGBTQ community. Maybe, if you’re coming to the game tonight and your child says, ‘What does that mean?’ explain it to them. Explain to them the importance of loving the person next to you, respecting them, no matter who they are, where they come from. They’re human beings, we’re all human beings. We’re all in this together.”

TIP-INS

Raptors: DeRozan has never won on the Warriors home floor (0-7). ... Jonas Valanciunas missed his second straight game and Lucas Nogueira also sat out, each with sprained left ankles.

Warriors: C JaVale McGee was a healthy inactive based on matchups. ... Thompson has hit a 3 in 59 straight games, the NBA’s longest active streak. ... Kerr spent the morning film session on cutting down fouls — and Golden State had just 15. “We have a number of issues that we’re concerned about but that’s No. 1. That’s by far at the top of the list because the domino effect of fouling is dramatic,” he said.

UP NEXT

Raptors: Visit the Lakers on Friday, continuing a season-long six-game road trip.

Warriors: Host Washington on Friday.

Aldridge, Murray power Spurs past Raptors, 101-97

By RAUL DOMINGUEZ
Associated Press
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The Spurs are without their two main leaders from last season, but they are not lacking in direction.

Resurgent forward LaMarcus Aldridge and second-year player Dejounte Murray continue to lead the way as San Antonio remained unbeaten by fighting past Toronto.

Aldridge had 20 points and Murray had 16 points and 14 rebounds and the Spurs held on to beat the Raptors 101-97 on Monday night.

“Just an overall good win against a really well-coached, disciplined team that has a lot of expectations,” San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. “It’s good for our confidence since we’re trying to put some things together.”

The Spurs are missing leading scorer Kawhi Leonard and Tony Parker, who are both rehabilitating from quadriceps injury. San Antonio has struggled to find an offensive flow without their veterans, but Murray is attempting to step into the void in just his second season.

“I just want to win,” Murray said. “I got that winning in my (inside) and in my DNA. I just do anything to win. If I don’t score a point, I’m going to go rebound. If I don’t rebound, I’m going to try facilitate or I’m going to try to play defense. That’s the thing that you’ve got to have.”

San Antonio needed that grit from the 21-year-old point guard in slugging through a physical game.

Both teams were assessed 20-plus fouls and Aldridge and Serge Ibaka received technical fouls after an altercation with 3:36 remaining in the game. The two got tangled battling for position under the rim when Ibaka threw an elbow into Aldridge’s midsection. Aldridge would push Ibaka before the two were separated.

Murray showed his growing comfort with a leadership role by taking Aldridge aside.

“I just told him, ‘You’re on another level, don’t worry about that, keep playing your game,’ ” Murray said. “He’s having a hell of a year and he’s having fun. I told him, ‘Don’t worry about that. Let’s move on, let’s win this game.’ ”

Aldridge responded minutes later by drawing a sixth foul on Ibaka. Aldridge shouted in celebration and glared at a fallen Ibaka after driving to the basket and scoring on a layup to give San Antonio a 97-87 lead.

“It just kind of woke me up a little bit,” Aldridge said. “It got the team awakened. Guys just kind of picked it up.”

The Spurs were able to overcome a season-high 20 turnovers. They were averaging 11 turnovers in their first two games, but had four in the opening four minutes.

Toronto took advantage, keeping the game close despite being outrebounded 55-33 as it played without injured center Jonas Valanciunas.

“We played great defense, but we’ve got to realize with that don’t let it go to waste by giving up offensive rebounds to the team,” DeRozan said. “That’s something we definitely can teak from (this game).”

DeRozan had 28 points and Ibaka had 13 before fouling out as the Raptors lost their first game of the season.

TIP-INS

Raptors: Valanciunas missed his first game with a sprained left ankle. There is no timetable for his return, but the 7-footer said he expects to play during the team’s current six-game road trip. . Toronto, San Antonio, Golden State and the Los Angeles Clippers are the only teams with at least 48 wins in each of the past four seasons. ... The Raptors have lost nine straight in San Antonio, last winning Dec. 28, 2007. ... Toronto was San Antonio’s first opponent at the AT&T Center. . The Raptors waived F K.J. McDaniels on Sunday. McDaniels was inactive for Toronto’s first two games, but totaled six points, five rebounds and two blocks in three preseason games.

Spurs: Danny Green had a career-high five blocks and San Antonio had 12 as a team. Green also scored 17 points. . F Joffrey Lauvergne exited with 9:19 remaining in the fourth quarter after spraining his right ankle. Popovich did not know the severity of the injury, but said it didn’t appear serious. . Anderson had a career high two blocks, both coming in the first quarter. ... The Spurs had a 3-pointer for the 978th straight game, the fifth longest streak in the NBA.

UP NEXT

Raptors: At Warriors on Wednesday.

Spurs: At Miami on Wednesday.

REMEMBER WHEN?

Murray’s 14 rebounds were the most by a Spurs guard since Ginobili had 15 against Toronto in 2008.

“It’s got to be a mistake,” Ginobili said, stunned.

Ginobili was asked if he remembered when he could soar like Murray.

“No,” he said, laughing. “What was it, 28 years ago? I remember when I was very active on the court and I could go for boards and play on the other end."

Raptors sign F Brown to two-way deal

The Toronto Raptors signed guard Lorenzo Brown to a two-way contract, the team announced Tuesday.

Brown, 26, averaged 3.3 points, 1.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 63 career NBA games with the Philadelphia 76ers (2013-14), Minnesota Timberwolves (2014-15) and Phoenix Suns (2015-16).

Brown split the 2016-17 season between the Zhejiang Golden Bulls of the Chinese Basketball Association and the Grand Rapids Drive of the NBA G League.

Brown was selected 52nd overall in the 2013 NBA Draft by Minnesota.

Recap: Blazers take down top-seeded Raptors

Joel Bartilotta, RotoWire

The No. 16-seed Portland Trail Blazers upset the top-seeded Toronto Raptors 91-85 in the second round of the Las Vegas Summer League playoffs at Cox Pavilion on Thursday.

The game was close throughout, with eight ties and 12 lead changes. The Blazers (3-2) took the lead for good on a Nick Johnson 20-foot jumper that made it 72-71 with 8:32 remaining, increasing their margin to 10 points with 4:35 to play. The Raptors (3-1) went on a 9-0 run, pulling to within one, 83-82, on a Fred VanVleet layup with two minutes left, but that's as close as they would get. 

Three-point shooting was decisive, as Portland shot 8-of-17 from long range while Toronto was just 7-of-35. The Blazers shot 49 percent from the field.

Johnson led the Trail Blazers with 17 points off the bench on 6-of-9 shooting from the field. Fellow reserve Jarnell Stokes totaled 13 points and five rebounds. Caleb Swanigan also had 13 points, adding 11 rebounds. Jake Layman and R.J. Hunter scored 12 and 11 points, respectively.

VanVleet carried Toronto with 31 points, six rebounds and two steals. Jordan Loyd finished with 17 points and Alfonzo McKinnie had 11 points and nine rebounds.

Portland plays the No. 8-seed San Antonio Spurs on Saturday in the quarterfinals. 

Raptors' re-signings of Lowry, Ibaka become official

The Toronto Raptors officially re-signed All-Star point guard Kyle Lowry and free agent power forward Serge Ibaka to multi-year contracts on Friday.

Lowry's contract is a reported three-year, $100 million deal, and Ibaka's is for three years and worth $65 million.

In five seasons with Toronto, Lowry averaged 18.2 points, 6.8 assists, 4.7 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 35.0 minutes during 354 regular-season games. He also averaged 18.1 points, 5.6 assists and 4.5 rebounds in 39 playoff appearances.

Lowry is the Raptors' all-time career leader with 828 made 3-pointers, second in assists (2,405) and sixth in scoring with 6,430 points. Over the past four seasons, he leads all Eastern Conference players with 727 3-pointers made.

"Kyle has been a valuable part of our team's success the past five years," Raptors team president Masai Ujiri said in a statement. "He has grown as a player and person during his time in Toronto and we are excited that he wants to be here to help us continue building a championship program."

Lowry averaged a career-high 22.4 points and shot a career-best 41.2 percent (193 of 468) from 3-point range in 60 games during the 2016-17 season.

The 6-foot-10, 235-pound Ibaka averaged 14.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.6 blocks (10th in the NBA) and 30.7 minutes in 79 games (all starts) last season between the Orlando Magic and Raptors.

Ibaka averaged 14.3 points, 6.5 rebounds and 30.7 minutes in 10 playoff games. The Raptors acquired him from the Magic on Feb. 14.

"We are thrilled with the skills and intangibles Serge brings to our team," Ujiri said. "He is one of the top two-way power forwards in the NBA and his ability to stretch the floor is a valuable asset today's game."

A native of the Republic of Congo, Ibaka owns career averages of 12.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.4 blocks and 29.1 minutes in 603 career games (492 starts) with Oklahoma City, Orlando and Toronto.

LeBron James scores 35 points, Cavaliers sweep Raptors

By IAN HARRISON
AP Sports Writer

TORONTO (AP) -- LeBron James and the Cavaliers are headed back to a familiar place after sweeping aside another overmatched opponent.

James scored 35 points, Kyrie Irving added 27 and Cleveland swept Toronto, beating the Raptors 109-102 on Sunday to give James his seventh consecutive trip to the Eastern Conference Finals.

"It's rewarding when you can advance," James said. "It's not just given to you, you have to go out and earn it. Once again I'm part of a team that's been able to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. It's going to be my ninth time in 14 years. I'll take those numbers."

Kyle Korver scored 18 points to help the Cavaliers become the first team to win eight straight playoff games the year following a title, and the first team to win eight straight in consecutive postseasons.

"The fact that we play our best basketball in the postseason lets us know that we're up for the challenge," said James, who had nine rebounds and six assists.

Channing Frye scored 10 points, and Irving had nine assists for Cleveland. The Cavs were 16 for 41 from 3-point range.

"When LeBron is shooting the 3 ball the way he is, at the rate he's shooting it, they're difficult," Toronto coach Dwane Casey said. "It's gong to take a Herculean effort to beat them."

The Cavs finished off the Raptors about an hour before Game 4 between the Celtics and Wizards tipped off in Washington.

That series won't end until Wednesday night at the earliest, and could run until Monday night, meaning the Cavaliers will have plenty of time to rest before the Eastern Conference Finals.

Asked to choose between the Celtics and Wizards, James claimed not to have a preferred opponent.

"It doesn't matter to me," he said. "I'm excited about us getting an opportunity to represent our franchise in the Eastern Conference Finals to go play for the big one."

Serge Ibaka scored 23 points, and DeMar DeRozan had 22 for Toronto. The Raptors took their first fourth-quarter lead of the series but couldn't avoid their fourth straight loss.

"We needed that, we needed to be tested throughout 48-minute games," Irving said. "One of the hardest things to do is sweep teams. We understand how important it is to come in and get a win and get rest."

Making his second start in place of injured point guard Kyle Lowry, Cory Joseph had 20 points and 12 assists for Toronto, which lost in six games against Cleveland last year in the Conference Finals. P.J Tucker had 14 points and 12 assists in his first career playoff start.

A 3 by Toronto's Fred Van Vleet cut it to 87-86 at 9:51 of the fourth, but James answered with a 3. Toronto kept it close, and took a 93-92 lead when Ibaka converted a three-point play with 6:38 left.

Irving responded with a 3 and, following a missed shot by DeRozan, added a pair of free throws to put Cleveland up 97-92 at 5:54. After a basket by Cory Joseph, Irving added two more free throws and a layup, scoring all of Cleveland's points in an 11-2 run that gave the Cavs a 103-95 edge with 4:00 remaining.

"We needed that spark," James said. "We just wanted to try to get defensive stops while he was in the zone and we were able to do that."

Toronto posted back-to-back 50-win seasons for the first time in franchise history and reached the playoffs for the fourth straight year. Beefed-up by late-season deals for Ibaka and Tucker, Toronto expected to push Cleveland a little harder this year, but showed they still couldn't handle the Cavs.

"It's on us to let this sink in and understand we gotta come back better, individual and team-wise," DeRozan said.

Casey tried to preach the positives, but acknowledged that his team's performance hadn't been good enough.

"It feels bad, it was ugly, but it shouldn't diminish the excellent regular season we had," Casey said.

TIP-INS

Cavaliers: Cleveland has swept its opponent all nine times it has taken a 3-0 series lead. ... Korver's career high for points in a quarter is 17.

Raptors: Toronto shot 10 for 29 from 3-point range. ... The Raptors used a different starting lineup in all four games. ... DeRozan's eight assists were a career playoff-high.

ANKLED

Lowry sprained his left ankle in the third quarter of Game 2, and aggravated the injury while trying to warm up for Friday's Game 3. He was not active Sunday.

BELOW THE BELT BLOW

Following a replay review, Cleveland's Iman Shumpert was called for a technical foul in the second after he kneed DeRozan in the groin area while going up for a jump shot, an incident that left DeRozan lying on the court in pain.

Cavs try to send Raptors packing

Stats, LLC

TORONTO -- The Toronto Raptors talked about playing for pride as they try to stave off elimination, while the Cleveland Cavaliers know they only need to continue playing their game, which has given them a 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinal series.

The Raptors must win Sunday at the Air Canada Centre if they are to extend the best-of-seven series and they do not want to end their season losing on home court.

The task could be that much tougher because point guard Kyle Lowry said Saturday he it is doubtful that he will be able to play Sunday because of a sprained left ankle.

"I'm probably doubtful," Lowry said. "Hopefully something changes but right now I don't think I will be able to play."

Lowry, an All-Star, suffered the injury early in the second half of Game 2. He wanted to try playing in Game 3 Friday but finally give up the effort and heeded the advice of the medical staff.

Lowry was listed as active for the 115-94 Cleveland victory, but never left the bench. He admitted Saturday that the efforts he made before Friday's game to try to play probably aggravated the injury and the soreness was more severe.

DeMar DeRozan, who scored a career playoff-best 37 points Friday, said the Raptors have handled adversity before.

"We pride ourselves all year off things like that, being down, being resilient, giving everything we've got and just fight," DeRozan said Saturday. "We have an opportunity to be able to exploit that (Sunday) and we're going to have do it from all angles."

The Cavaliers, who won their first 10 playoff games last year and eventually won the NBA championship, are 7-0 so far in the postseason this year.

LeBron James, who scored 35 points to lead the Cavaliers on Friday, said he puts no emphasis on ending the series in four games.

"The only thing that is important is coming out and playing our game," he said. "Our coaching staff once again will give us a game plan and it is up to us to go execute.

"It is a quick turnaround, early game on Sunday. We do not need to be thinking about a sweep or getting rest. We need to be thinking about what we need to do to execute defensively and offensively coming into Sunday."

Kevin Love, who scored 16 points and grabbed 13 rebounds on Friday, was asked if this year's team is better than the one last year.

"We just want the effort to consistent and continue to play inspired basketball and put together 48 really good minutes of basketball," Love said. "We had some tough plays, turnovers (Friday) and, as I mentioned, they play well here at home, they really fight.

"It's a great crowd, but we felt like we handled it well, especially being down three at the half and came back, fought, got the lead in the fourth and never really looked back. ... The effort was there (Friday).

"It's not easy to win a Game 3 on the road or three in a row in a playoff series."

The Raptors were 2-for-18 on 3-point shots on Friday, missing their first 12 of the game.

DeRozan, who was 12-for-23 from the field and 13-for-13 on free throws, did not take a shot from 3-point range.

"I thought we did an excellent job of moving the basketball, finding the right person," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. "But again, it's something we've done, knocking down 3s all year and, for whatever reason, it's escaping us right now.

" ... At one point, we were one of the better offensive teams in the league, depending on the 3s, knocking down the 3, and now we have to transfer it from regular-season basketball to playoff basketball."

The Cavaliers, who were 13-for-23 in 3-point shots, also had the advantage in rebounds over the Raptors, 49-25.

"With our rebounding with Tristan (Thompson) and Kevin (Love), if they play small then we have opportunities to pound them on the glass," Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue said. "That's just the way we play. Those two guys together, it's a tough duo and you add LeBron to the mix when they play small on him.

"If we're getting stops, of course, we're going to defensive rebound. All around it was a good game for rebounding the basketball offensively and defensively, so we just have to continue to keep that up and come here on Sunday. They are going to play even better than they did (Friday) to start the game and we just have to be ready for it."

James scores 35, Cavs take 3-0 lead with 115-94 victory

By IAN HARRISON
Associated Press

TORONTO (AP) – Last year, LeBron James and the Cavaliers had their postseason win streak end in Canada.

This time, Cleveland came across the border and kept right on rolling.

James scored 35 points, Kevin Love had 16 points and 13 rebounds, and the Cavaliers pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat the Toronto Raptors 115-94 on Friday night and take a 3-0 lead in their second-round playoff series.

"We knew we were coming to a hostile environment, we knew they were going to give us everything they had, no matter who was in the lineup," James said. "We just had to weather the storm."

DeMar DeRozan scored 37 points and Jonas Valanciunas had 19 for the Raptors, who were without three-time All-Star Kyle Lowry. They trailed by only two after three quarters before the Cavaliers quickly blew open the game.

Game 4 is Sunday in Toronto.

"We don't need to be thinking about a sweep or getting rest, we need to be thinking about what we need to do to execute defensively and offensively coming into Sunday," James said.

With his team on the brink of elimination, Raptors coach Dwane Casey looked at Game 4 a little differently.

"Sunday's game is about pride," Casey said. "You don't want to get swept, especially in your home building."

That won't be easy against the Cavaliers, the first team since the Minneapolis Lakers in 1949 and 1950 to win their first seven playoff games in consecutive seasons.

Cleveland won 10 straight to begin the playoffs last year, a streak that ended when Toronto beat the Cavs in Games 3 and 4 of the Eastern Conference finals.

"We came in here (last year) and weren't prepared," Kyrie Irving said. "This year we understood what mindset we had to come in, especially in a rowdy arena like this."

Irving scored 16 points and Kyle Korver had 14 for the Cavaliers, who have posted three straight double-digit wins over Toronto. James had eight rebounds and seven assists.

"We were not giving up but they were better than us," Valanciunas said.

Norman Powell scored 13 points and Serge Ibaka had 12 for the Raptors, who shot a dismal 2 for 18 from 3-point range.

"Something we've done is knock down 3s all year," Casey said. "For whatever reason it's escaping us right now."

DeRozan said his team's long-range struggles were made even more "deflating" because Cleveland connected 13 times on 23 attempts from beyond the arc.

"It's tough to win a game when you only make two 3-pointers," DeRozan said.

Lowry sprained his left ankle in the third quarter of Game 2 and did not practice Thursday. He worked out a few hours before Friday's game and was on the court during warmups but hobbled back to the locker room before the anthems.

"He was limping badly," Casey said. "He just couldn't go. He wanted to. The doctors and trainers and medical people were just telling him he shouldn't try to go because he was in so much pain."

Cory Joseph started for Toronto.

Even without Lowry, the Raptors trailed 79-77 to begin the fourth, but Cleveland pulled away as Toronto missed 10 of its first 11 field goal attempts to begin the final quarter.

"Nothing could fall for us, especially at the start of that fourth quarter," said DeRozan, who had just one point in the final quarter.

With Toronto struggling, James hit four free throws on either side of a 3-pointer to put the Cavs up 97-80 with 6:20 left.

"That stretch right at the beginning of the fourth quarter is what got us," Casey said.

The Raptors missed their first 12 shots from 3-point range before Powell connected with 3:09 left in the third.

TIP-INS

Cavaliers: Tristan Thompson got in the face of Valanciunas after the Lithuanian center dragged James down to the court during a third-quarter skirmish. ... Thompson had 12 rebounds. The Cavaliers outrebounded the Raptors 49-25.

Raptors: Joseph started for the first time in 70 playoff appearances. ... Lowry is averaging 15.8 points and 5.9 assists in eight games this postseason.

LBJ BUMPS SHAQ

By shooting 9 for 16, James (2,047) passed Shaquille O'Neal (2,041) and took over third place for career postseason made field goals.

THREE OF A KIND

The Raptors have lost three straight for the first time since the All-Star break. Toronto lost three in a row from Feb. 8 to 14.

UP NEXT

Game 4 tips off at 3:30 p.m. EDT on Sunday.

Raptors hoping to get back into series with Cavaliers

Stats, LLC

TORONTO -- Hope is about all that remains for the Toronto Raptors when they play Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Cleveland Cavaliers Friday night at the Air Canada Centre.

First, the Raptors hope that All-Star point guard Kyle Lowry will be able to play after suffering a sprained left ankle in Game 2 Wednesday.

He did not practice Thursday as he had his ankle evaluated further and was listed by coach Dwane Casey as questionable for Friday.

"Kyle is our driving force, our point guard, our leader," All-Star Toronto guard DeMar DeRozan said Thursday. "So, for us not to have him anything close to 100 percent, it would be difficult on us. But next guy, everybody else has to do something a little bit more to fill whatever void it is he can't fully do out there on the court."

As much as Lowry is on the Raptors' hope list, so is DeRozan. The Raptors hope that he regains the scoring touch that was absent in Game 2.

They also hope that they can make history repeat itself.

Last season, in the Eastern Conference finals, the Cavaliers won Game 1 by 31 points and Game 2 by 19, both games at Cleveland.

The Raptors came back to win the next two games at home before losing the series in six games. Last year, they were 99-84 winners in Game 3 with DeRozan scoring 32 points and won 105-99 in Game 4 with Lowry scoring 35.

Casey feels that the Raptors can play themselves back into the series at home as they did last season, despite dropping the first game 116-105 followed by a 125-103 loss in Game 2.

"When we lost by (31) here last year, everyone knocked us and said it was over with," Casey said. "It was done. I don't believe in that. I believe in our players. I believe in our guys, and I know there is another level we can get to."

They will need both Lowry and DeRozan at their best.

Lowry allowed that his ankle was sore after the game Wednesday. He talked about playing on Friday although that did not seem so certain Thursday.

The ankle was injured when teammate Norman Powell was thrown into him as both were on defense 30 seconds into the second half. He left briefly, then returned for eight minutes before being removed for the rest of the game, having scored 20 points.

"They are the defending champs and that is what they are looking like," Lowry said. "But I am still confident with us going home."

DeRozan was held to five points on 2-for-11 shooting in Game 2.

"We know DeMar is a great player and our strategy in the last three years since I've been here is just take away what a team does best," Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue said. "So we're going to pay great attention to him. I give J.R. (Smith) a lot of credit, Shump (Iman Shumpert) a lot of credit and LeBron (James) a ton of credit. We know (DeRozan) is a great player and we don't want him to get comfortable."

"They're into him, they're bodying him," Casey said. "He's got to vault up and make his shots. I've got to do a better job of getting him open looks. At the end of the day we're going to go the way he and Kyle go."

No matter what the Raptors do, the Cavaliers still have James, who scored 39 points in 36:36 Wednesday.

He moved past Kareem Abdul-Jabbar into second place on the all-time playoff scoring list.

"I'm very blessed and I'm taking advantage of the opportunity I've been given," James said. "Even at 32, I've been in this league for 14 years and I just don't take the opportunity for granted."

He has 5,677 career playoff points, trailing only Michael Jordan, who has 5,987

"He's playing well," Casey said. "We put him on the line 21 times. Way too many."

Unstoppable: LeBron scores 39, Cavs rout Raptors in Game 2

By TOM WITHERS
AP Sports Writer

CLEVELAND (AP) -- Unstoppable. Untouchable. Undefeated.

Back on the playoff stage, where he's starred so many times before, LeBron James is making things look easy.

James scored 39 points, hopped Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the career playoff scoring list and pushed the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 125-103 blowout over the Toronto Raptors in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series on Wednesday night.

And while he may not win another regular-season MVP, James is again showing that May and June belong to him.

"I'm feeling pretty good," he said, downplaying his break-neck start to this postseason. "Just blessed I'm able to make a few plays tonight to help us win another game."

Just like a year ago in the conference finals, the Cavs are up 2-0 on the Raptors, who had better figure some things out or this series will be over quickly. Toronto was blown out for the fifth straight time in Cleveland in the playoffs, losing each by an average of 24.2 points.

"We take our butt whupping and head home," said Raptors coach Dwane Casey.

Game 3 is Friday night at Toronto's Air Canada Centre, where the Raptors will have the crowd on their side.

However, they won't have James, who has won a road game in 27 consecutive series and appears determined to toss Toronto aside. He finished 10 of 14 from the field, dropped four 3-pointers and 15 free throws.

"He did miss six free throws," cracked Toronto's Kyle Lowry. "He's playing unbelievable. He's playing like LeBron James. We got to figure out a way to not let him beat us, which is easier said than done."

In Cleveland's last nine playoff wins, James is averaging 34.9 points, 10 rebounds and 8.1 assists.

Kyrie Irving had 22 points and 11 assists and Channing Frye scored 18 points for the reigning champions, who are 6-0 so far defending their title. Cleveland is 9-0 since losing Game 4 of last year's NBA Finals.

"They're defending champs and that's what they look like right now," Lowry said.

The Raptors didn't start Jonas Valanciunas, but he led them with 23 points. Toronto only got five points from All-Star DeMar DeRozan, who didn't make his first field goal until the first minute of the fourth quarter.

Of bigger concern might be the status of Lowry, who sprained his left ankle in the third quarter. Lowry scored 20 points but spent the fourth quarter in the locker room icing his ankle.

"It's pretty sore," Lowry said after limping onto the postgame podium. "It's painful, but I'm not going to complain about it. Get treatment and get ready to play in Game 3."

James came in needing 25 points to pass Abdul-Jabbar, and he overtook the Hall of Fame center with a 3-pointer in the third quarter, when he scored 17 and helped the Cavs open a 26-point lead. James (5,777 points) now only trails Michael Jordan (5,987), the player to whom he has been compared since he was a teenager, for the most points in postseason history.

"You hear a name like Kareem, a guy who's done so many great things, not only as an individual but as a teammate," James said. "Winning championships in the `80s and things of that nature and how many points he's put up. He's somebody you read about. I didn't get an opportunity to actually watch him play growing up, but I just read about his accomplishments and things he was able to do, so, it's pretty cool."

TIP-INS

Raptors: In part because of the small lineup, Toronto was outrebounded 13-2 in the first quarter. ... Toronto lost the first two games in Cleveland last year by a combined 50 points. This year, 33. "The series has gone nowhere," Casey said. "They played well, we shake their hand. They played well, but we haven't scratched the surface of where we can go."

Cavaliers: Frye made five 3s and the Cavs made their first eight while going 18 of 33 from long range. ... Dating to 2015, Cleveland is 30-4 - 17-1 at home - against Eastern Conference teams in the postseason. ... James also became the fourth player with 300 career 3-pointers in the postseason, joining Ray Allen (385), Reggie Miller (320) and Manu Ginobili (312).

LINEUP SWITCH

Casey started a smaller lineup, benching the 7-foot Valanciunas and forward DeMarre Carroll in favor of guard Norman Powell and forward Patrick Patterson. He also moved Serge Ibaka from power forward to center.

The moves gave Toronto more ball handlers and opened the floor on offense. But they didn't work simply because the Raptors couldn't contain James.

Casey, though, is confident his team can go home like it did last year and even the series.

"I believe in our players," he said. "I believe in our guys. I know there is another level we can get to. I've seen it before."

DOUBLING DEMAR

Cleveland's defensive game plan to double-team and trap DeRozan has worked to a charm. He missed his first nine shots and finished 2 of 11.

"It sucks," he said. "To lose like we did and to play like I did, it sucks. It's frustrating."

FREE SHOTS

Casey didn't complain about the officiating, but he did point out that James attempted 21 free throws and the Raptors took 19.

UP NEXT

James is 12-0 with Cleveland in a series when leading 2-0 and 19-0 overall.

---

For more AP NBA coverage: https://apnews.com/tag/NBAbasketball

Major hops: LeBron scores 35, grabs beer as Cavs top Raptors

By TOM WITHERS
AP Sports Writer

CLEVELAND (AP) LeBron James resisted drinking some beer. He downed the Raptors again instead.

James grabbed a bottle of beer on the sideline while scoring 35 points, Kyrie Irving added 24 and the Cleveland Cavaliers picked up where they left off following a long layoff and throttled Toronto 116-105 on Monday night in the opener of their Eastern Conference semifinal.

The Cavs hadn't played since April 23, when they completed a four-game sweep of Indiana. But the defending champions didn't show signs of rust and were well-prepared to face the revenge-seeking Raptors, who lost to Cleveland in last year's conference finals.

"That was the mystery coming into the game, how we would come out?" James said. "Obviously you prepare, you want to come out and play well, but you never know after an eight-day layoff. But the energy was phenomenal."

Toronto dropped to 1-12 in playoff openers, and the Raptors got blown out in the playoffs for the fourth straight time in Cleveland.

Game 2 is Wednesday night.

Kyle Lowry scored 20 and DeMar DeRozan 19 for the Raptors, who were within seven in the third quarter before James dropped a 3-pointer, converted a three-point play, drained another 3 and then considered washing down a brew - a moment he said wasn't planned.

After drawing a foul on a missed layup, James playfully hopped toward the sideline, where a courtside server was passing by. The three-time champion reached and grabbed a beer bottle from her hand and brought it toward his lips before putting it back.

"I wasn't going to run over our beer lady," he said. "She had one and I grabbed it. I'm not a beer guy. If she had some red wine I would have probably taken a sip."

With trade acquisitions Serge Ibaka and P.J. Tucker, this Toronto team seemed better equipped to beat Cleveland than the one which lost in six games in last year's playoffs.

Trouble is, James only seems to be getting better and the Cavs are gaining speed.

"They were well-rested, flying around - almost like a half a step quicker than we were all night," said Toronto coach Dwane Casey. "We've got to make adjustments as far as how we want to guard the paint and then get out to the 3. Offensively, get cleaner looks."

Before the game, Casey talked about the big comebacks that have been a theme in these playoffs. The Raptors blew a 25-point lead to Milwaukee in the first round, while the Cavs overcame a 25-point deficit and pulled off the biggest second-half rally in playoff history.

"There's no lead safe in the NBA," he said.

That's what happened to the Cavs in the first half as they built an 18-point lead only to watch the Raptors go on a 19-3 burst to pull within 41-39.

But Cleveland regrouped and, playing a turnover-free second quarter, led 62-48 at half.

James' legs looked fresh early on as he and Irving teamed up on a stunning alley-oop.

After he poked the ball away for a steal, James took off up the floor with Irving on the break. James pointed toward the backboard and Irving understood the message, bouncing a pass high off the glass that James grabbed and dunked with his left hand.

TIP-INS

Raptors: Have lost last four postseason games in Cleveland by an average 24.7 points. ... G Norman Powell appeared to intentionally hit Kevin Love in the groin area, a play that could come under league review. Later, Powell was assessed a technical for jawing with Cavs G Dahntay Jones, who was ejected and will be fined. ... Toronto's lone win in a playoff opener came in 2001.

Cavaliers: G/F J.R. Smith banged his surgically repaired right thumb in the first half. He said the team's medical staff told him there was no structural damage. ... James needs 25 points to pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (5,762 points) for second place on the league's postseason scoring list, and two 3-pointers to join Ray Allen, Reggie Miller and Manu Ginobili as the only players to connect on 300 postseason 3s. ... James has scored at least 30 in 88 playoff games, tying Kobe Bryant for second on the career list. Only Michael Jordan (109) has more.

IRVING'S DIMES

Irving had a playoff career-high 10 assists after getting just 12 in the entire series against Indiana. None was as memorable as his leave for James.

"It's just another play in the books for me and Bron," he said.

THE WHOLE TRUTH

James had some memorable playoff matchups with Paul Pierce, who played his last game on Sunday when the Los Angeles Clippers were eliminated by Utah.

The 39-year-old Pierce played 19 seasons, and as far as James is concerned, he should be on his way to basketball immortality.

"He put his mark on this game," James said. "Somebody I've always respected and competed against and pushed me in the Eastern Conference for quite a while. A champion. His numbers and what he was able to do out on the floor speaks for itself. So I would say his next stop is the Hall of Fame. He had a hell of a ride for sure."

UP NEXT

The Cavs are 16-1 at home against Eastern teams in the playoffs since 2015.

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Capsule preview of the Raptors-Cavaliers series

Capsule and prediction for the Eastern Conference semifinal series between Cleveland and Toronto that begins Monday:

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No. 2 CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (51-31, 4-0) vs. No. 3 TORONTO RAPTORS (51-31, 4-2)

Season series: Cavaliers, 3-1.

Story line: Rematch of last season’s Eastern Conference finals, won by Cleveland in six games. The Cavaliers then beat the Raptors three more times in the first six weeks of this season before Toronto won on the final night with LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love all sitting out.

Key matchup: James vs. Serge Ibaka and P.J. Tucker. Toronto acquired the defensive-minded forwards during the regular season but they didn’t have much success stopping Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo in the first round. Antetokounmpo is good. James, who averaged a spectacular 32.8 points, 9.8 rebounds and 9.0 assists in a first-round sweep of Indiana, is better.

Prediction: Cavaliers in 7.-

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Compiled by AP Basketball Writer Brian Mahoney

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Tested again, resilient Raptors rest up for Cavs rematch

By GENARO C. ARMAS
AP Sports Writer

MILWAUKEE (AP) – The Toronto Raptors keep getting themselves into tough situations in the playoffs.

They hope their resilience helps make them stronger as they get ready to face the Cleveland Cavaliers again.

At the least, the Raptors will need to get better at holding onto big leads after blowing a 25-point advantage against the Milwaukee Bucks before winning 92-89 on Thursday night. Toronto took a physical, tiring first-round series in six games.

"We're just a team up north. We don't get a lot of respect and I like that," coach Dwane Casey said. "As a matter of fact I think we're better with our backs against the wall."

The Eastern Conference semifinals start in Cleveland on Monday.

"Ready for the next one. Ready for the next one," guard DeMar DeRozan said. The Raptors' leading scorer had 32 points on 12-of-24 shooting, along with five steals.

But once again, the Raptors didn't make it easy on themselves. They looked as if they were on cruise control after DeMarre Carroll's 3 gave them the 71-46 advantage with 5:16 left in the third quarter.

Then they started resembling the team that got embarrassed in a 27-point blowout in Game 3.

Giannis Antetokounmpo played 47 minutes, mustering enough energy to help spearhead a second-half rally. He repeatedly tore through the Toronto defense to get to the lane, finishing with 34 points. Khris Middleton fought through an illness that bothered him all week to score 19 points.

On offense, the Raptors stopped moving the ball. They had so much success up to that point with throwing quick passes, finding cutters and scoring on pick-and-rolls. The Bucks didn't trap as much as earlier in the series, throwing a new wrinkle at Toronto.

"I handled it well. I was ready (for) whatever they were going to throw at me," DeRozan said. "I knew later in the game it was going to be difficult and it was."

Both teams were tired in the final few minutes, especially the Bucks. But Milwaukee still set an aggressive tone from late in the third quarter through most of the fourth. Casey said his team had lost some composure during the Bucks' run.

"Our physicality is something we have to look at," he said. "At the end of the day, I loved our resiliency. I loved how our guys didn't cave in."

Toronto answered the Game 3 blowout by winning a defensive slugfest in Game 4, the start of three straight victories to close out the series.

Now it's on to Cleveland, a year after losing to the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference finals in six games.

Casey said again on Thursday night that his playoff-tested team knows how to respond from adversity. They're used to being doubted.

"We're better from that standpoint," he said. "We've got some fighters and scrappers. ... We make it hard on ourselves sometimes, but at the end of the day we're going to go down swinging."

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Whew! Raptors blow 25-point lead, but beat Bucks 92-89

By GENARO C. ARMAS
AP Sports Writer

MILWAUKEE (AP) – The crowd on the road was rowdy. The 25-point lead was gone. The Toronto Raptors were frazzled, in danger of losing a Game 6 in the playoffs again.

This time, Toronto found a way to win.

DeMar DeRozan scored 32 points, Cory Joseph had five points in a 9-0 run in the final 2 minutes to answer a furious rally by the Milwaukee Bucks, and the Raptors held on for a 92-89 victory Thursday night to take their first-round playoff series in six games.

The Raptors move on to face the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference semifinals, a series that starts Monday.

"We lost our composure a little bit," coach Dwane Casey said. "Again, we found a way to (hold on). That's what good teams do."

Toronto snapped a five-game losing streak in Game 6s, earning a couple extra days off to rest for the Cavaliers. The Raptors also need to work on finishing off opponents in the second half.

Joseph's 3 with 1:27 left put Toronto up for good, 85-82. Two foul shots from Joseph with 33.9 seconds extended the lead to seven.

The Raptors could finally breathe easy after DeRozan went 2 of 2 from the foul line with 3.1 seconds to play for a three-point lead. Tony Snell's inbounds pass on the ensuing possession was intercepted by DeRozan.

"We stayed calm. We knew they weren't going to give up," DeRozan said.

Jason Terry's 3 with 3:06 left had given the Bucks an 80-78 lead, completing an unlikely comeback from the 25-point deficit with 5:16 left in the third quarter. The Raptors looked as if they were on cruise control after DeMarre Carroll's 3 gave them the 71-46 advantage.

Giannis Antetokounmpo spearheaded the second-half rally for Milwaukee. He had 34 points.

But the Bucks finished one comeback short.

A 9-of-18 showing from the foul line in the fourth quarter hurt, too.

"We always talk about the little things, and when we look at this it comes down to just free throws," coach Jason Kidd said. "We don't need to overanalyze it. We got to the stripe and we just couldn't capitalize on that."

Khris Middleton added 19 points for the Bucks after missing practice time this week because of illness.

TIP-INS

Raptors: Toronto last won a Game 6 in 2001 after defeating Philadelphia in a second-round series. ... Entering Thursday, Toronto was 0-4 all-time in Game 6s on the road, and 0-3 in Casey's six-year tenure with the team. That stretch started in 2014, when the Raptors lost a first-round series to the Brooklyn Nets, who were then coached by Kidd. ... DeRozan was 7 of 13 for a game-high 16 points in the first half. ... The Raptors lost three of four games to Cleveland in the regular season.

Bucks: Middleton made the only 3 of the first half for Milwaukee, which missed its eight other shots from behind the arc. The Raptors outscored the Bucks 28-22 in the paint, negating Milwaukee's strength. ... The franchise hasn't won a playoff series since advancing to the Eastern Conference finals in 2001.

BREATHLESS BUCKS

The furious effort appeared to sap the energy of the young Bucks. Even Antetokounmpo, a gym rat, looked tired with his hands on hips as he caught his breath during fourth-quarter breaks. He played 47 minutes.

Antetokounmpo finished 13 of 23 from the field and 2 of 6 in the fourth.

A frenetic, towel-waving crowd helped fuel the Bucks.

"You know you're going to be tired, it's the playoffs. I just was thinking in my mind `Do whatever it takes,'" the All-Star said. "I told my teammates to just fight through it. It was not just me. Everybody was tired."

LOSING FOCUS

Nearly everything was going Toronto's way from late in the first quarter to midway through the third quarter.

Then the Raptors lost focus. They looked like the team that had the embarrassing 27-point loss in Game 3.

"I think we gave up the lead by not passing the ball, not moving the ball as much," guard Kyle Lowry said. "But you live and you learn. ... On to the next one and we're prepared for the next one."

Lowry finished with 13 points.

UP NEXT

The Raptors will face Cleveland a year after losing to the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference finals in six games.

"Winning in Cleveland is difficult. We know what we're facing," Casey said. "Hopefully we've got a couple days now to review what they're doing."

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