Legends66NBA7
03-02-2015, 07:46 PM
Game Preview: http://www.nba.com/games/20150302/TORPHI/gameinfo.html?ls=slt
While their Atlantic Division title hopes remain healthy, the Toronto Raptors' season-high skid has put them in a fight for positioning in the Eastern Conference.
The Raptors will try to avoid their sixth straight loss Monday night by extending their dominance over the Philadelphia 76ers.
Toronto (37-22) has a 12-game lead in the Atlantic and a top-four seed in the playoffs. As recently as Feb. 20, the Raptors had a 3 1/2-game lead over Chicago on the No. 2 spot in the East but that edge is down to one-half game after their five consecutive defeats.
Toronto is also just one game ahead of fourth-place Cleveland and is on the verge of its first six-game skid since Dec. 3-12, 2012.
"We are going to solve this together," guard Greivis Vasquez said. "We are not going to point fingers. We are going to gather ourselves and talk to each other and figure it out. Nobody said this is going to be easy."
Toronto's first four losses came against teams that are in top nine spots in the West, capped by a 113-89 drubbing to league-leading Golden State on Friday. The Raptors' latest defeat, though, came against NBA-worst New York on Saturday.
The team's struggling top scorer Kyle Lowry was given the night off in that 103-98 defeat. Lowry had four points on 1-of-7 shooting in the loss to Golden State and is averaging 11.6 points on 29.7 percent shooting -- including 4 of 28 from 3-point range -- in five games since the All-Star break.
Lowry averaged 18.6 points in his first 53 games this season and had a game-high 21 in a 91-86 win in Philadelphia on Jan. 23. The Raptors have won a series-best seven in a row over the 76ers (13-46) and three straight road matchups.
Philadelphia managed to overcome its 35.0 percent shooting Friday and snapped a five-game skid with an 89-81 win over Washington. The 76ers couldn't pull of that feat again while shooting 34.5 percent in a 94-74 drubbing at Indiana on Sunday.
The Pacers held the 76ers to 10 points in the fourth quarter on 4-of-22 shooting, and Philadelphia lost one of its top scorers, Robert Covington, to injury in the third quarter.
Covington came off the court holding his right arm after landing awkwardly on a layup attempt.
"He took a big hit," coach Brett Brown said. "The X-rays were negative on his shooting elbow."
Covington is the team's current top scorer (13.2 ppg) with Tony Wroten out indefinitely following knee surgery and Michael Carter-Williams traded to Milwaukee. Nerlens Noel played Sunday despite dealing with leg pain incurred from Friday's win.
Covington overcame a 5-for-15 shooting performance to score a team-best 18 points in the loss to Toronto in January. Noel had a career-high 14 rebounds and 12 points while the Raptors' DeMar DeRozan was held to eight points on 4-of-14 shooting.
DeRozan, scoring 17.8 points per game, averaged 25.8 in his previous six matchups but enters this one in a shooting slump. The guard has connected at 33.7 percent in his last 12 games and missed 38 of 52 attempts in his past three contests.
While their Atlantic Division title hopes remain healthy, the Toronto Raptors' season-high skid has put them in a fight for positioning in the Eastern Conference.
The Raptors will try to avoid their sixth straight loss Monday night by extending their dominance over the Philadelphia 76ers.
Toronto (37-22) has a 12-game lead in the Atlantic and a top-four seed in the playoffs. As recently as Feb. 20, the Raptors had a 3 1/2-game lead over Chicago on the No. 2 spot in the East but that edge is down to one-half game after their five consecutive defeats.
Toronto is also just one game ahead of fourth-place Cleveland and is on the verge of its first six-game skid since Dec. 3-12, 2012.
"We are going to solve this together," guard Greivis Vasquez said. "We are not going to point fingers. We are going to gather ourselves and talk to each other and figure it out. Nobody said this is going to be easy."
Toronto's first four losses came against teams that are in top nine spots in the West, capped by a 113-89 drubbing to league-leading Golden State on Friday. The Raptors' latest defeat, though, came against NBA-worst New York on Saturday.
The team's struggling top scorer Kyle Lowry was given the night off in that 103-98 defeat. Lowry had four points on 1-of-7 shooting in the loss to Golden State and is averaging 11.6 points on 29.7 percent shooting -- including 4 of 28 from 3-point range -- in five games since the All-Star break.
Lowry averaged 18.6 points in his first 53 games this season and had a game-high 21 in a 91-86 win in Philadelphia on Jan. 23. The Raptors have won a series-best seven in a row over the 76ers (13-46) and three straight road matchups.
Philadelphia managed to overcome its 35.0 percent shooting Friday and snapped a five-game skid with an 89-81 win over Washington. The 76ers couldn't pull of that feat again while shooting 34.5 percent in a 94-74 drubbing at Indiana on Sunday.
The Pacers held the 76ers to 10 points in the fourth quarter on 4-of-22 shooting, and Philadelphia lost one of its top scorers, Robert Covington, to injury in the third quarter.
Covington came off the court holding his right arm after landing awkwardly on a layup attempt.
"He took a big hit," coach Brett Brown said. "The X-rays were negative on his shooting elbow."
Covington is the team's current top scorer (13.2 ppg) with Tony Wroten out indefinitely following knee surgery and Michael Carter-Williams traded to Milwaukee. Nerlens Noel played Sunday despite dealing with leg pain incurred from Friday's win.
Covington overcame a 5-for-15 shooting performance to score a team-best 18 points in the loss to Toronto in January. Noel had a career-high 14 rebounds and 12 points while the Raptors' DeMar DeRozan was held to eight points on 4-of-14 shooting.
DeRozan, scoring 17.8 points per game, averaged 25.8 in his previous six matchups but enters this one in a shooting slump. The guard has connected at 33.7 percent in his last 12 games and missed 38 of 52 attempts in his past three contests.