(Toronto) Gary Trent Jr. had 24 points, including a crucial three-point shot with just over a minute on the clock late in the game, to lead the Toronto Raptors to a 90-87 victory over the Knicks New York on Friday.
At the end of an evening that was not particularly good on the field for the Raptors, it all came down to a crazy last minute, where the commitment and the desire to win defensively were everything. the difference.
It was enough to make Fred VanVleet smile again.
” I will take it ! He laughed. The guard was angry after Wednesday’s loss to the Thunder.
“There was nothing perfect, but I think some of us figured out that the attack was going to be an adventure, that’s what Nick (Nurse) and I like to call it. In defense, however, we really fought and struggled and I think we deserved to win, ”continued the playmaker.
VanVleet contributed to the victory with 17 points, in addition to providing 11 assists, as rookie Scottie Barnes set a new personal best with 15 rebounds in addition to registering 12 points. Still deprived of several key elements of their roster, the Raptors (12-14) provided the collective effort necessary to win. Pascal Siakam contributed with 13 points and 12 rebounds while Montrealer Chris Boucher provided 14 points.
In the Knicks camp (12-14), Canadian RJ Barrett and young Obi Toppin led the attack with 19 points each.
After taking a heartbreaking point loss in the last second of play Wednesday against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Raptors appeared to be heading for an easy victory Friday night, widening a 20-point lead in the first quarter. .
But the Knicks, who were just ahead of the Raptors in the Eastern Association standings before the game, had no intention of giving up. So much so that the Raptors’ lead was only four points at the start of the fourth quarter, and it even melted completely a few minutes later when Toppin put in a three-point shot to tie the game.
VanVleet then took matters into his own hands, giving the locals a five-point lead with a three-point shot in turn.
Julius Randle had the opportunity to tip the game in favor of the Knicks when he missed a three-point shot in the dying seconds of the game. Barrett also had his chance with 0.2 seconds on the clock, but the ball hit the ring.
After the game, Trent said head coach Nick Nurse put a lot of emphasis on the young Raptors’ defensive play.
“We’re working hard on this, we’re getting there. Every day, when we show up on the court, we work to put the pieces in the right places, slowly but surely we begin to understand the portrait, ”he said.
Nurse made similar comments to her young guard about the hard work on the defense.
“The balls recovered, the offensive rebounds, these are good signs, he said. We really needed to play with a high energy level. You have to do it, you have to recover at least half of the free balls, you have to be aggressive on the rebound to gain additional possessions. I had the impression that we did this all evening. Our active hands also made it possible to deflect balloons or to make certain passes imprecise. ”
Supporters for the Knicks kept them in the game when they collectively scored 20 points in the second quarter in a 29-9 push that made up for the Raptors’ 34-14 run-off in the first quarter. The locals, however, responded before half-time with an 11-3 push to regain control of the table.
Barrett had nine points in the third quarter, including five in a row to give the Knicks a one-point lead. The 21-year-old Ontarian is starting to regain his form after missing a few games with an illness unrelated to the pandemic.
As for the Raptors, we still had to defend ourselves without OG Anunoby, Khem Birch and Precious Achiuwa, all injured.