[ad_1]
TORONTO – The Toronto Raptors' soft start to the NBA season was tough on Monday.
The New Orleans pelicans defeated Toronto 126-110, leaving the Raptors only with the second defeat of their young campaign and their first home defeat.
Toronto's defense was upset, allowing the opposition to reach peaks of the season in points allocated (126) and as a percentage of its placements (0.545). At the other end, the offensive crumbled – especially from three points where the Raptors made only 13 attempts out of 45.
"It was a tough night, they did everything better than us," said Pascal Siakam, a top scorer for Toronto (12-2) with 22 points, a one-day high, in which he was named player of the week of the Eastern Conference.
It was the second time in a row that Siakam was leading Toronto in scoring.
The Raptors coach, Nick Nurse, told his players that it was one of those nights.
"I just told them, Hey, listen, they were really good, sometimes you get kicked in this league, let's get out of here, let's go home and get ready to bounce back because we have several games to come to We must forget about this as soon as possible, learn what we can learn.The ball goes back here in a few days and we have to be ready to fight a little bit stronger, "said the nurse .
E & # 39; Twaun Moore had 30 points, the highest of the season, for the Pelicans (7-6), while Jrue Holiday tied the season high with 29 points and 14 badists. Anthony Davis has 25 points and 20 rebounds, the fifth game of his career in 20-20.
Pelicans starters combined 106 points and shot 60% (45 of 75) of the field. New Orleans scored 72 points in the paint, 30 more than the Raptors.
The Pelicans coach, Alvin Gentry, enjoyed his team's third consecutive win but refused to overdo it.
"We still have 69 games to play, and I'll talk to you after the 69th match," he said.
Gentry's respect for the Raptors has not faltered.
"It's a defeat, it's a great team we've played in. It's a very good team, Nick has done a great job with these guys … we have a very good team. played well tonight and we beat at that time. "
"It's a good win for us on the road against a very good team – it's really all," he added.
Kawhi Leonard has 20 points for Toronto and Serge Ibaka has added 19. Ibaka has now scored double-digit in 13 consecutive games, making it the third series of his career and the longest since 2014.
Kyle Lowry had 11 badists, but only four points on a shot on 9, missing all six three-point attempts.
"We just have not played our basketball brand tonight," Lowry said.
The Raptors entered the game after a run of six wins and the best league record. The only other loss of the season in Toronto was a 124-109 decision in Milwaukee on Oct. 29.
The Raptors had won the previous seven home games. After Monday's game, Toronto, Memphis and Milwaukee were the only home unbeaten teams.
Toronto had won 12 of the last 14 games with the Pelicans and swept the past three seasons.
Not this night.
Toronto is behind by two after the first quarter and five at the half. The pelicans pushed the lead to 13 in the third quarter.
The deficit was entering the fourth quarter. A first run of 7-2, thanks in part to two turnovers from Pelican, reduced the gap to six. But New Orleans fought back with a 8-0 lead to advance to 14 with 8:39 remaining.
Toronto could not bring the pelicans back.
The Pelicans did not have two starters in the leader Elfrid Payton and forward Nikola Mirotic, both ankle injuries.
Payton, the son of Elfrid Payton Sr., a member of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame, and Mirotic averaged 32.2 points, 17.7 rebounds and 7.7 badists this season.
The only missing Raptor was Norman Powell (shoulder).
Toronto was third in the league scoring points (117.9 per game), while New Orleans was fourth (117.7). And the billboard was quickly handed in, thanks in part to defenseless Toronto defenders.
At just 40%, the Raptors had 66 points, the highest of the season in the first half. Ibaka (17) and Leonard (15) accounted for almost half of Toronto's total.
New Orleans hit four of its first five shots and was led by six others in the first quarter. Toronto missed its first six shots before Siakam finally fell away.
Davis showed his repertoire with a block, a sneaky ally and 10 points in the first half, before picking up a third foul just before halftime.
C.J. Miles from Toronto did not finish the first half, put away by a strain of right adductors.
The New Orleans season has been one of the ups and downs so far. The Pelicans started with four straight victories, then six straight losses before embarking on a new winning streak.
The team excelled at home (5-1) but had difficulties on the road (2-5).
Toronto hosts the Detroit Pistons and former coach Dwane Casey on Wednesday.
___
Follow @NeilMDavidson on Twitter
Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
[ad_2]
Source link
