"Brandon Ingram had a nice putback dunk to get Toronto on the board right away. It ended up being his only two points for the half, but he found ways to help the team as a facilitator and on defence, even when his offence was a struggle."
"The defence was quite poor for most of the first quarter, but the Raptors did what they do best: turn teams over and score on the break all game long. The intensity picked up late in the first quarter when Jamal Shead brought his hard hat and sparked more urgency on the dirtier end of the ball."
"Sandro Mamukelashvili hasn't looked the same since returning from the All-Star break, as he has only been able to hit the double-digit mark just two times before tonight's contest, and the opening quarter looked like it would be another poor game from the Georgian when he kept clanking three-point shots."
The Toronto Raptors returned home after a road loss to Minnesota, facing a non-top 10 opponent to build momentum after winning only one of their previous five games. Brandon Ingram opened with a putback dunk and contributed defensively despite limited offensive output. Scottie Barnes scored seven points in the first quarter, while Gradey Dick capitalized on early playing time with ten points. Daniel Gafford posed challenges early, but Jakob Poeltl provided solid defense. The Raptors' defense struggled initially but improved through turnovers and fast-break scoring. Jamal Shead brought defensive intensity, while Sandro Mamukelashvili recovered from early struggles by locking in defensively and eventually finding offensive rhythm with a three-pointer in the second quarter.
Read at Raptors Republic
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]