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Grinding through February: week three
The Toronto Raptors have played seven times this month and have managed six wins (.857). The Raps can finish no worse than 6-6 in February. The hardest stretch of the month is upcoming--five games in eight nights including three on the road.
The Raps are 29-24 right now.
Week 3: vs. Cavaliers, vs. Pacers, @ Bobcats
The Raptors have split the first two meetings with LeBron James and his Cleveland Cavaliers this season, managing a home win and a road loss to the second overall team in the East. On the 22nd of November, in front of a sold-out crowd at the ACC, Toronto held the Cavs to just 12 points in the fourth quarter to nab a 95-87 victory, their first in seven games. All-Star Chris Bosh had 25 points, 14 rebounds, and 6 assists in the contest, and Joey Graham contributed 16 and 8 in the winning effort. In early December the Raptors visited the Quicken Loans Arena where LeBron James poured-in 26 points and had 10 assists to lead the Cavs to a 95-91 victory; Donyell Marshall added 19 points including a three-pointer with 19 seconds remaining in the game to seal the deal. The Cavaliers are 6-4 in their last ten but have won 4-of-5. Raptors fans will be hoping the weekend binge that is the All-Star break inflicts a toll on King James that he won't have recovered from by Wednesday.
On Friday the Raptors host the Indiana Pacers. Indiana is 28-24 on the season, 1/2 game behind Toronto as of now. They are coming off a five-game home stand in which they earned just two wins. New Pacer Mike Dunleavy is scoring and rebounding more in yellow and blue but his shooting percentage has dipped to 43%. Troy Murphy, another player brought over in the trade with Golden State, has seen his shooting percentage rise to 47%, but he is getting only 24 minutes of playing time in a starting role. The driving force behind the Pacers--if you consider the sputtering, defensive style coach Rick Carlisle employs a forward-moving one--is All-Star Jermaine O'Neal, currently number two in the NBA in blocks per game (3.04) behind Marcus Camby (3.05). Pacers fans are still wondering if and when a major injury could sideline O'Neal and the Pacers' chances at an Eastern Conference title run (again).
Finally the Raptors visit the Charlotte Bobcats on Saturday, a team they defeated easily last month at the ACC. Raptors starters saw limited playing time in the affair, leading to five Raptors players scoring in double-digits in the game. The Bobcats defeated the Bulls last week but are 2-and-5 in February. They have seven players averaging more than ten points per game this season but their highest scorer, Gerald Wallace, is putting up just 16 a contest. 94.82 points per game, the Bobcats' average, is 25th overall in the NBA this season, and their shooting percentage--.437--is last. Also dead last is their points differential, at -5.0. The Raptors seemingly need to score a hundred points and play a little bit of defense to win this one.
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Grinding through February: week three
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