This article was last updated on April 16, 2022
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| Raptors guard Leandro Barbosa floats a shot up over three Pacers |
Pacers’ Danny Granger has harsh words for Raptors’ Leandro Barbosa
The Toronto Raptors seemed to learn from their mistakes on Wednesday night.
There was no collapse on Friday evening as the Raptors held on to a double-digit fourth quarter lead to end their three-game losing streak and defeat the slumping Indiana Pacers 108-98 at the Air Canada Centre.
The Raptors (18-47) played well all game but were buoyed by a strong first half as the team shot 59.5% from the field and led by 14 points at the break. The Pacers (27-38) lost their sixth game in-a-row and are now tied with the Charlotte Bobcats for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
On Wednesday, the Raptors had a 14 point cushion to start the fourth quarter but coughed up the lead to the visiting Utah Jazz, losing at the buzzer by a single point. There was no repeat of that performance on this night. The Dinos held an 83-73 advantage to start the final 12 minutes and played good team defence down the stretch to preserve the victory.
“I’m just happy we won as a team,” said forward Reggie Evans who finished with a game-high 16 rebounds. “That’s the main thing. I was able to come in and help the team out and was happy that we were able to close the game out. I wasn’t too happy with how we closed the game out last game, so it feels good to get the win.”
Despite playing with a sore back Leandro Barbosa had a spectacular game. The guard received treatment throughout the contest, but it didn’t seem to slow him down as he finished with a season and game-high 29 points in 26 minutes off the bench.
Raptors coach Jay Triano was very impressed with the efforts of both Barbosa and Evans.
“When Leandro came in you could tell it was one of those nights,” said Triano. “He felt good and had it going and Reggie just kept getting us more possessions and then limiting the number of possessions that they were going to get with his rebounding. He’s scrappy, he slaps at the ball and knocks it loose and keeps everybody on edge. Both those guys off the bench did a very good job."
Evans had another stellar effort in just his second game back from injury. The forward missed 47 games after fracturing his right foot during a November 26 game at Boston.
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| Raptors forward Reggie Evans (centre) grabs one of his game-high 16 rebounds |
Evans did not make a field goal attempt the entire game, which was probably a good thing considering he had two air balls from the foul line. He simply stuck to what he does best and that’s rebounding. Evans came off the bench and was a sparkplug for the Raptors all night as he fought for every loose ball.
"He’s got great energy,” added Triano. “He chases every ball. It’s a testament to him playing the game the right way. He goes after every rebound. It’s not like there’s a possession where he floats back on defence, he challenges everybody every time."
Ed Davis had another double-double finishing with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Davis and Evans combined for 29 rebounds and nearly equaled the entire Pacers output as Toronto outrebounded Indiana 46-34. Raptors also outscored the Pacers’ bench 46-29.
Davis took the place of the injured Amir Johnson in the starting lineup. Johnson left Wednesday’s game with a sprained left ankle, but could return to the lineup as soon as Sunday.
Andrea Bargnani was back in action after missing the previous game with flu-like symptoms and still seemed to be feeling the effects of the illness. Bargnani had a horrible night, shooting a ghastly 1-for-13 from the floor finishing with just eight points and five rebounds.
James Johnson had a big first quarter and finished with a season-high 13 points shooting a perfect 6-of-6 from the floor. Jose Calderon had another great effort and distributed the ball very well, finishing with 13 points and eight assists.
Barbosa Angers Granger
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| Pacers forward Danny Granger (right) muscles his way past Raptors James Johnson (left) |
Barbosa also angered Pacers’ small forward Danny Granger on the final play of the game. With the Raptors up by ten points and the game already decided, Barbosa went in for a layup with six seconds left in the game. Although Barbosa missed, Granger confronted Barbosa after the final whistle and had some harsh words for him.
After the game, Granger was still fuming.
“If I was on him, I would have took his head off and I would have been suspended for a game for a flagrant foul,” said Granger, who finished with a team-high 25 points.
“Stuff like that will set in the back of your head the next time we play Toronto. We don’t play them again but if I was on him, I would have taken his neck off."
Barbosa said the shot was in direct retaliation to a play in Toronto’s 104-93 loss in Indianapolis on January 31. In a similar situation, Pacers point guard Darren Collison hit a late three pointer which angered the Raptors. Barbosa remembered the incident and exacted some revenge.
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| Barbosa (right) drives the ball past Pacers’ Brandon Rush (centre) |
“You can’t get respect if you don’t give respect,” said Barbosa. “When we went there to play, I wasn’t there, but I saw on TV they made a shot when the game was over and they counted the shot. We did the same thing, they got mad. But like I said, this is the NBA. You can’t give respect if you don’t have respect.”
When Granger was asked about the incident in January, he replied, “I can’t remember but, like I said, it’ll sit in the back of your mind next time you play Toronto. That’s unsportsmanlike. I would have taken his head off and busted his lip. That’s just me though."
Both teams will not play each other again this season, which is perhaps a good thing. Tempers would certainly flare if the teams met again. Time will tell if the emotions are still high when both teams faceoff next season.
“For us, it’s even,” added Barbosa. “We won’t do that anymore if they don’t do it.”
The Raptors hope to play the role of playoff spoiler again as they continue their four-game homestand against the Charlotte Bobcats on Sunday. The afternoon tilt will tipoff at 1pm.
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