Sunday, January 3, 2010 raps vs spurs nba tv 6:00 PM ET

[Spursmania]

Bogans with a 3! 10 point game. Please, no more bone-headed plays guys!

[Spursmania]

Hill makes it an 8 point game believe it or not.

[Supergirl]

Spurs cut it to 8 pt lead, and then get the ball back on Hill's defense...

[Refocus]

Finally single digits! Then a Raptors TO!

[Rummpd]

Lets go Spurs!

[Spurs Brazil]

Hill with 2 good plays

Raptors up 8

Spurs ball

[TJastal]

George Hill!

[Chieflion]

Alright, a good chance to cut into the lead.

[raspsa]

The crowd starting to tense up..

[Supergirl]

also, Manu's basket at the 10 min mark are his first pts of the game. If Spurs go on to win this (still a long shot at this point) this will be the turning point for them.

[Chieflion]

They never get things right. NBAtv games are always fucked up.

[Spurs Brazil]

DAMN RJ, damn

[Spursmania]

RJ with a long jumper.

[JustinJDW]

Finally, single digits. 8-point lead with 8 minutes to go is nothing! Lets play Spurs Basketball and SPURS DEFENSE!

LETS GRIND THIS ONE OUT!

[blkroadrunners]

Good move RJ.

[Spursmania]

Nice aggressive play by RJ again. Come on please make both!

[Refocus]

C'mon Rich, make these FTs!

[Spursmania]

RJ makes them both cutting the lead to 6!

[Spursmania]

Great follow through D by Duncan!

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

omg...

[Libri]

oh crap!

[Refocus]

Bargnani with the dagger.. ugh..

[alchemist]

:lmao

[Supergirl]

RJ starting to do his part but it may be too late for the Spurs...still, there's enough time.

[Spurs Brazil]

That was a fucking foul on Bogans

Bargnani 3, Raptors up 9

Fuck refs

[Chieflion]

NO!!!!!!! Why? Why?

[Duncan2177]

Lets give the ball to Bogans with the game on the line. :lol

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

bogans wide open for three and he ran into a crowd for a floater fml

[JustinJDW]

Fuck Bargnani. Hes not even a real fucking big man.

[Spursmania]

Damn! Did you see how pissed Timmy's face looked after Bar made that 3? Whoah!

[thispego]

IVE never HEARD AN AIRPHONE LIKE THAT AT A NBA GAME.

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

Damn! Did you see how pissed Timmy's face looked after Bar made that 3? Whoah!

missed it...is bar his man?

[timtonymanu]

Spurs need resilience. Lakers and Celtics have it.

[ducks]

tp was all over bogans passing up the wide open three

[Spursmania]

I really want to see them grind it out and learn to steal a win like this! They can still do it.

[TJastal]

I wouldn't whine about refs, they totally screwed the raptors last time they played us.

Way worse than what we're seeing here tonight.

[Spursmania]

missed it...is bar his man?

It's Bargnani...

[Johnny RIngo]

Lets give the ball to Bogans with the game on the line. :lol

After going to Bonner for the game-winner, a few weeks ago, nothing surprises me anymore with this team.

[Spursmania]

Alright. Manu at the line and Raps with 4 team fouls.

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

It's Bargnani...

lol i mean was timmy guarding bargnani?

[Spursmania]

7 point game. Now Spurs Now. Play some D!

[lefty]

Subliminal message ?

[lefty]

Lucky CB4 lost the ball

[Spursmania]

TO by Raps. 6:00 minutes to go. Spurs down by 9.

[lefty]

Nice Manu !!!!

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

tp is forcing shoots...not good...

[Spursmania]

Pass to Timmy from Manu. 7 point game.

[lefty]

Allez !

[lefty]

Manu WTF

[Spurs Brazil]

WTF with Mason Jr and those passes

[Spursmania]

Manu had that lay-up. Damn.

[lefty]

TO TO

See what I did here ? :D

[Chieflion]

Mason with his shitty passes. Trying to be "creative".

[phxspurfan]

Spurs got this.

[Spursmania]

TO by Raps. That good hustle by the Spurs. Missed shot again.

[Capt Bringdown]

Spurs need resilience. Lakers and Celtics have it.

During our prime, this is the kind of game we could pull out. Now we're clearly in "it's going to take a miracle" mode.

Too many built-in excuses with this team.

[lefty]

Jarett Jack

[lefty]

Man too many defensive switches forced

[timtonymanu]

If only the spurs can hit a shot after a to, then we got a game.

[lefty]

Game over

[Spursmania]

I think it's over guys. We just aren't hitting on the O.

[lefty]

So, Raps give us the ball everytime, and we don't capitalize

[murpjf88]

ginobili doesn't know how to take a charge.

[Texas_Ranger]

Raptors should win all top 10 actions on nba.com.

[lefty]

Ok ok

[lefty]

Uh oh

[lefty]

Phew

[Spursmania]

RM misses the open 3. Bosch had tons of contact on TD. Raps should be in the penalty no?

[Mal]

Wow, still a game to win

[lefty]

Why is Manu on the bench

[Spursmania]

6 point game. Spurs need a stop. 2:57 to go. Raps have the ball. Time out.

[Spurs Brazil]

Raptors up 6 with the ball

Time out

[superjames1992]

ginobili doesn't know how to take a charge.
Then why does Manu take charges all the time? He may be the NBA leader in taking charges.

[alchemist]

-Stupid decision to not start Tim
-Toronto actually played defense (don't let the idiots tell you otherwise)
-Spurs clanked jumper after jumper
-Spurs missed too many layups
-Dice = fail
-Hill = fail

[Spursmania]

During our prime, this is the kind of game we could pull out. Now we're clearly in "it's going to take a miracle" mode.

Too many built-in excuses with this team.

It's still not over yet. Albeit, looks like a long shot. And, nobody is on fire offensively.

But have to give them props for continuing to fight.

[TJastal]

I think that fucking airhorn disrupted RMJ's 3 pointer. Usually in a situation like this he's money every single time.

I'd love to take that thing and see how far I can shove it up the guy's ass who has been blowing on it all game long.

[Spurs Brazil]

Why is Manu on the bench

He's sick

[Spursmania]

He's sick

Seriously?

[superjames1992]

He's sick
I didn't realize that. No wonder his shot has been off.

He's got a lot of rebounds and assists, though, so he's contributing well still.

[lefty]

Leo Rautins must be one of the most overpaid sport announcers

[blkroadrunners]

Good steal by TP.

[lefty]

And 1!

[superjames1992]

Duncan!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Spursmania]

Nice chance for Salvatore to call this game and win his side bet. Lol...

[Libri]

Yessss!

[Mal]

Toronto sucks.

[Refocus]

TP with the clutch steal.. TIMMY AND 1 BABY!

[Spurs Brazil]

TD and one!!!!!!!!!!

[Spursmania]

TD with the and 1!

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

lol @ TD punching the BB

[Spursmania]

3 point lead by the Raps.

[Chieflion]

Duncan with the and 1. Make it and it is a 3 point game.

[lefty]

Faaaaaaaaaaak

[Libri]

:bang

[Spursmania]

Fucking Jack. Little shit.

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

wow TP getting his jumper to drop

[Spursmania]

TP is the man tonight. Now if Manu can step it up and help the trio win like in the old days!

[lefty]

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh

[Chieflion]

Parker right back at him.

[Mal]

Brickgniani always defend with hands.

[lefty]

Fuck


Fuck








It's TP's fault !!!!! :lol

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

arghhh fcuk you pop

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

Why go to the WORST SHOT IN YOUR ARSENAL Tim??? :pctoss

[alchemist]

clank after clank :lmao

[Libri]

Well that sucks.

[Spurs Brazil]

Shit

[boutons_deux]

Bosh outplaying Tim

[Spursmania]

That TD miss and rebound might have been the game.:(

[Johnny RIngo]

-Stupid decision to not start Tim
-Toronto actually played defense (don't let the idiots tell you otherwise)
-Spurs clanked jumper after jumper
-Spurs missed too many layups
-Dice = fail
-Hill = fail

Jefferson being a non-factor in the starting lineup didn't help much either.

[TIMMYD!]

Now it's over.

[Crookshanks]

Spurs fought back, but I just don't think they have enough to pull this one out. Spurs shots were just not falling tonight and their defense was very inconsistent.

[Mal]

Bosh outplaying Tim

What ?? Both are terrible today.

[DPG21920]

Just another example of how Bargnani's defense has improved.

[Crookshanks]

Anybody miss Bruce? :depressed

[Spursmania]

Spurs fought back, but I just don't think they have enough to pull this one out. Spurs shots were just not falling tonight and their defense was very inconsistent.

Shots really weren't falling except for TP.

[alchemist]

clank after clank :lmao
:toast

[Spursmania]

5 point game. 40 seconds left.

[lefty]

Well, no surprise here


Timmy afraid of FT's

[Mal]

omfg

[Chieflion]

We lost.

[timtonymanu]

Timmy :(

[Libri]

Bogans clutch!

[Refocus]

Holy shit!?

[Spurs Brazil]

Bogans 333333333333333

[Spursmania]

Bogans hits a 3. 2 point lead. 12 seconds left.

[TJastal]

Don't get why the spurs are going to Duncan in crunch time when Parker has been white hot the entire game.

[boutons_deux]

Tim has been so good at the line recently, oops!

[superjames1992]

Mr. Bogans!!!

[JustinJDW]

Omg! Wtf is going on!

[blkroadrunners]

Not over yet.

[Mal]

fucking free throws...

[z0sa]

Gotdamn. This is when those 2 FTs would have tied the game.

[Chieflion]

Bogans with a 3. May be all for naught unless we get an immediate steal.

[Spurs Brazil]

We'll have to foul twice

[Pauleta14]

Tony told Bogans where to stand during Timmy's FT... good play!

[Crookshanks]

Gotdamn. This is when those 2 FTs would have tied the game.

I know Tony's been pretty good tonight - but how many FT's did he miss?

[Chieflion]

Jose Calderon is the coach?

[lefty]

Mason with a steal and the 3 at the buzzer

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

if this go OT it will make pop a even more stupid fcuk

[Spursmania]

I just can't be pissed at TD for the misses. I think Pop started the game on the wrong foot with his shitty line-ups. On the road it's hard to get rhythm and much harder to get it when your line-ups are tinkered with.

At least they fought until the end.

[TJastal]

Well it was a great effort to get back into this game after that huge defecit from the 1st half.

[Spursmania]

11.1 to go. Bosch on the line. Fucker needs to choke!

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

2nd of b2b on the road, and the Raps actually played D.

Tough, but nothing to worry about given the way the team has been playing.

[lefty]

Game over

[Mal]

Choke it...

[Spursmania]

:bang Fricking Bosch.

[lefty]

Jose Calderon is the coach?

He should be

[timtonymanu]

Well the Spurs showed a little resilience.

[Spurs Brazil]

Raptors up 4, 11 secs to go

Spurs ball

[Mal]

After that Bosh will demand maximum contracts. Pretty sure he is not worth it

[boutons_deux]

yeah, Tim loses the game at the line, Bosh seals the game at the line.

Bosh outcrunches Tim

[superjames1992]

Bah.

We need a three, IMO.

[Spursmania]

Gotdamn. This is when those 2 FTs would have tied the game.

yeah...:depressed

[Mal]

Go for 2 points now

[Chieflion]

Tim Duncan utter choke.

[Mal]

Now it`s game over

[lefty]

Fuck, we should have tried a 3.


TD will miss his FT's

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

TD missing FTs...now it is over..

[lefty]

That's right TD, shake your head

FT choker

[Mal]

wrong guy choked today

[Spursmania]

Timmy! Misses the FT's again. We still suck at FT's lol...

3 point game.

[Capt Bringdown]

Missing 10 FT's for a pitiful 60% clip sure didn't help us tonight, amongst all the other failures and non-performances.

[Chieflion]

Ridiculous.

[lefty]

Roflmao

[Spursmania]

They can sure make their FT's.

[TPnumber1]

euh why tony is on the bench ? hill in :bang

[Mal]

I don`t get it. We had red hot Parker, but all plays went through Timmy, who hadn`t got his day.

[Johnny RIngo]

I give TD a pass on this awful performance after the way he's carried this team all season. Manu/Jefferson should have stepped up instead of playing like role players.

[Texas_Ranger]

We did not lose cause of FT... The players sucked the whole game.

[DPG21920]

This looked the games earlier in the season where very controllable things (turn overs, ft's ...)lost the Spurs games.

[timtonymanu]

philly aint winning against denver so this loss will put us about 4th or 5th? i can live with it.

[superjames1992]

Wow! What a horrible play. We needed a three, not a two! RMJ should have shot that, even though he wasn't open. We don't have time for that!

[TPnumber1]

tony on the bench ??? fuck you pop

[Spursmania]

Yep, missed FT's and TO's. Didn't help that Timmy And Blair didn't start.

[boutons_deux]

Can't beat EC lottery team.

Spurs go below .500 on the road

[alchemist]

that's game, fuck Pop (for today atleast)

[Spursmania]

This game was winnable.

[blkroadrunners]

It's over.

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

this is so over..the longer the spurs stay on court the more stupid pop looks

[Spursmania]

I'm going to go eat and have a beer. Pop sucked tonight.

[timtonymanu]

next game go back to what was working. no more tinkering pop! clearly if the spurs started duncan + blair, we may have seen different results. We did better in the second half starting those two.

[superjames1992]

Can't beat EC lottery team.

Spurs go below .500 on the road
Toronto is the 6th seed in the East, not a Lottery team.

[JustinJDW]

So.....Spurs won right?

Nah seriously though, Timmy should have started. Either Timmy is playing or he isn't. Don't put him in halfway through the 2nd Quarter and screw up all the chemistry.

Oh well, win streak is over.

[superjames1992]

Well, it's over now.

Oh well, we'll move on!

[Spurs Brazil]

This one is 100% on Pop

Raptors sucks

If he played the normal rotation this game would be over in the 3rd

Now we got a L and no rest fot TD

Great job Pop :bang

[blkroadrunners]

Toronto is the 6th seed in the East, not a Lottery team.


Wow, outside the Hawks, Celtics, Magic, and Cavs, the East really sucks.

[alchemist]

:lmao Duncan/29 min

fuck you Pop!

[z0sa]

LOL @ Pop not even resting Timmy any more minutes than he usually does.

[TJastal]

If Tim and Blair start as usual this is a W, raptors never get rolling into that huge lead that was so tough to overcome.

Heartbreaking loss and all the momentum the spurs had pissed away.

[timtonymanu]

This one is 100% on Pop

Raptors sucks

If he played the normal rotation this game would be over in the 3rd

Now we got a L and no rest fot TD

Great job Pop :bang

exactly. we did so much better in the second half with Blair + Duncan. We could have used Bonner in this game.

[Mal]

Well, Spurs lost this game, not Toronto win it. Very pathetic 1st half. So many stupid plays. Is winning b2b game so hard ? Charlotte just won in Cleveland, and yesterday at Miami, so it is possible. Spurs have very deep bench, but suck at b2b, I don`t get it.

[Chieflion]

Wow, outside the Hawks, Celtics, Magic, and Cavs, the East really sucks.
The Raptors have won 6 of 7 and had one of the toughest schedules to date. Don't let the record fool you.

[Mal]

exactly. we did so much better in the second half with Blair + Duncan. We could have used Bonner in this game.

Bonner is healthy ?

[z0sa]

Spurs have very deep bench, but suck at b2b, I don`t get it.

At some point, one must realize it falls on Pop and the coaching staff to make sure this team is focused offensively every night - there's no reason they should ever have these scoring droughts; the talent does not permit it.

[timtonymanu]

Well, Spurs lost this game, not Toronto win it. Very pathetic 1st half. So many stupid plays. Is winning b2b game so hard ? Charlotte just won in Cleveland, and yesterday at Miami, so it is possible. Spurs have very deep bench, but suck at b2b, I don`t get it.

they did manage to beat Milwaukee + New York last week so ...

[siraulo23]

This one is 100% on Pop

Now we got a L and no rest for TD

Great job Pop :bang

:bang:bang:bang

**** me

Should have just rested timmy

[timtonymanu]

Bonner is healthy ?

no. i meant that the spurs could have used his offense this game. it was what the spurs were lacking.

[Pauleta14]

I still don't get why TP didn't shoot more tonight!?!!!!
Is he thinking about his stats (FG%?) or was that CIA Pop's idea not to use more his best weapon of the night??

[benefactor]

ducks = game blog fail.

[Trainwreck2100]

Why does Pop hate NBA tv?

[Chieflion]

I still don't get why TP didn't shoot more tonight!?!!!!
Is he thinking about his stats (FG%?) or was that CIA Pop's idea not to use more his best weapon of the night??
Parker usually is the 3rd option in crunch time behind Duncan and Manu. He didn't see the ball.

[Mal]

they did manage to beat Milwaukee + New York last week so ...

Diffrent things. Very easy win over Bucks, then bad game versus New York,but manage to win.

Now. Not so easy win over Wash, today completely awful game and lost. Spurs look really bad on b2b.

[Pauleta14]

Parker usually is the 3rd option in crunch time behind Duncan and Manu. He didn't see the ball.

Aren't we supposed to adapt to who's hot? (ie: Mason against Wash, Bonner sometimes...)
I'm not talking only in clutch time, he had 2 or 3 shots only in the 2nd half!!

[kace]

Parker usually is the 3rd option in crunch time behind Duncan and Manu. He didn't see the ball.

Parker was even our first option not so far away. but he really made good choices with the ball in the 4th even if he didn't shoot it as much as his FG % would imply this game.

not a big deal. Tim has the right to miss a game considering how amazing he is this year. but it's been a while i'm more comfortable with the ball in the hands of TP or manu in crunch time.

[boutons_deux]

"6th seed in the East"

... effectively a lottery quality team.

[Chieflion]

Aren't we supposed to adapt to who's hot? (ie: Mason against Wash, Bonner sometimes...)
I'm not talking only in clutch time, he had 2 or 3 shots only in the 2nd half!!
It has been like this when the offense is not flowing. Duncan gets all the shots on 4 down, the rest of the guys stand outside and start watching. When the offense flows, everyone gets shots. From the 1st minute, the offense sucked, only Parker was hitting shots, he got benched to play motherfuckin George Hill and never looked the same when he returned and never saw the ball.

[kace]

Aren't we supposed to adapt to who's hot? (ie: Mason against Wash, Bonner sometimes...)
I'm not talking only in clutch time, he had 2 or 3 shots only in the 2nd half!!

i assume he's saying tony should have the ball more, as a third option, like a praise to his good game, but as a TP, well let say non-fan, as he is, he brings that TP is "only" the third option in crunch time like a true fact.

[the crimson blur]

"6th seed in the East"

... effectively a lottery quality team.

Oh ffs. This loss means nothing about our team. We were down like 16 by the time Duncan came in. We run everything through him; without him we aren't the same. Add the fact that it was an early back2back and Manu is sick, and this game loses all meaning.

This game tells us as much about the Spurs as the first game against Toronto: Nothing.

[alchemist]

"6th seed in the East"

... effectively a lottery quality team.
they're a good home team, they have that extra confidence.

[ElNono]

Good game. We had a bad shooting night. Happens to everybody. I liked we made a run at the end and if not for the poor FT shooting, we could have won this.
We're not going to win them all, so no big deal really. Tony and Tim mostly carried us tonight, but the defense was good in the second half.

[Josepatches_]

Tony was 5-17 last night.He never had problems to shoot when he is awful so he's not going to have problems when he is shooting pretty well.

If he was out in the second half it was only because he doesn't have enough energy after back to back and his amazing effort in the first quarter.

Anyway tonight it wasn't TD's best game but Bosh was 10-24 and he was the player of the game for the NBA TV.

TD was tired at the end.Pop was a master today.Bench him in the start and put him to play the finals 30 of 33 minutes.Really great.

[Lady M]

I still don't get why TP didn't shoot more tonight!?!!!!
Is he thinking about his stats (FG%?) or was that CIA Pop's idea not to use more his best weapon of the night??

TP was 6/7 after 1st quater 9/11 at the end of the game
no shoot in the second quater he didn't see the ball when everyone other than Tim was 25%
he didn't finish his penetration
why pass the ball for a player who was 25% when you are in the bottle and you shoot 80% :(

when spurs lost against Portland he was 7/9
and yesterday 5/17

[Spursmania]

Good game. We had a bad shooting night. Happens to everybody. I liked we made a run at the end and if not for the poor FT shooting, we could have won this.
We're not going to win them all, so no big deal really. Tony and Tim mostly carried us tonight, but the defense was good in the second half.

Yeah. They just can't get it done every night. No biggie here. I think they will be fine. I liked their fighting spirit as well. But I did not enjoy Pop's decision regarding Timmy and Blair. Just didn't see any benefit of doing it the way he did.

Too much wine last night, I guess.:drunk

[ElNono]

If Tim and Blair start as usual this is a W, raptors never get rolling into that huge lead that was so tough to overcome.

Heartbreaking loss and all the momentum the spurs had pissed away.

We should just tank now... momentum gone and it's going to be mid-January in two weeks!

:rolleyes

[ElNono]

Yeah. They just can't get it done every night. No biggie here. I think they will be fine. I liked their fighting spirit as well. But I did not enjoy Pop's decision regarding Timmy and Blair. Just didn't see any benefit of doing it the way he did.

Too much wine last night, I guess.:drunk

Well, this is the time to try different things. When is he going to do this, mid-March? It's just a game. We'll be fine.

[blkroadrunners]

The Raptors have won 6 of 7 and had one of the toughest schedules to date. Don't let the record fool you.


Eh, outside the Spurs, those other 5 wins come against mediocre .500 teams or lower, and that one lost was against C's team w/ no Rondo, Pierce, nor Garnett. They'll make the playoffs, but they're just an average team; the top 4 EC teams are in a whole different league.

[Chieflion]

Eh, outside the Spurs, those other 5 wins come against mediocre .500 teams or lower, and that one lost was against C's team w/ no Rondo, Pierce, nor Garnett. They'll make the playoffs, but they're just an average team; the top 4 EC teams are in a whole different league.
You beat who you can beat. The Raptors are just getting started. I am looking for them to have nice playoff series with the top 4 seeds.

[Blackjack]

Raptors 91, Spurs 86 - final (http://blogs.mysanantonio.com/weblogs/courtside/2010/01/spurs-vs-toront.html)
By Joe Alexander


The Spurs went through a scoring slump in the second quarter and paid the price with a 91-86 road loss to the Toronto Raptors.

The Spurs scored 15 points in the second quarter. The Spurs outscored the Raptors 52-43 in the second half. The loss ends a five-game Spurs winning streak.

Tony Parker had 23 points and six assists for the Spurs.

Tim Duncan did not start and sat out the entire first quarter. He recorded 21 points and 12 rebounds off the bench.

"He's played a lot of minutes," coach Gregg Popovich said of Duncan. "He played more than we wanted last night so we just wanted to have him in the fourth quarter rather than the first. Not too much happens in the first quarter of NBA games."

Richard Jefferson had 12 points.

Spurs starters Theo Ratliff, Antonio McDyess and Keith Bogans combined for eight points (six for Bogans, two for McDyess and zero for Ratliff).

The Spurs shot 41.3 percent from the field.

"Every time we made a play to get right back into it, it seemed like we either made an offensive foul or we missed something easy or we missed free throws," Duncan said. "We just kind of shot ourselves in the foot."

Chris Bosh led the Raptors with 22 points and 15 rebounds and passed Vince Carter to become the team's career scoring leader.

"I'm proud of him," Spurs guard Roger Mason Jr. said of Bosh. "I was here his rookie year and saw the talent. He's obviously worked very hard. It's a great achievement."

- quotes from the Associated Press

Third quarter: The Raptors lead the Spurs 67-55 at the end of the third quarter. Tony Parker has 21 points and Tim Duncan has 14. Chris Bosh has 16 points and just became the Raptors' all-time career scoring leader, passing Vince Carter.

Second quarter: The Spurs shot only 35.0 percent in the first half and trail the Raptors 48-34 at halftime. Tony Parker has 15 points and Tim Duncan has 10 -- the rest of the Spurs combined for nine.

First quarter: The Raptors lead the Spurs 27-19 at the end of the first quarter. Tony Parker has 13 points. Tim Duncan did not play in the quarter.

[Blackjack]

Bosh sets franchise scoring record in win over Spurs (http://www.nba.com/games/20100103/SASTOR/gameinfo.html)

Standing in the locker room, game-worn jersey slung over his shoulder, game shoes in hand, Chris Bosh wore a satisfied smile.

On an evening where his Toronto Raptors managed to withstand a late push from the San Antonio Spurs and hang on for the 91-86 victory, it was a special day for Bosh himself.

At the 1:39 mark of the third quarter, a 16-foot jump shot by Bosh allowed him to jump over Vince Carter as the franchise's all-time points leader.

While the Spurs threatened late and the game came down to who could make their free throws, Bosh was relieved his milestone came in a victory.

"That was the best part," Bosh said of the win in which he led his team with 22 points and 15 rebounds. "I was thinking it would be really nice to set the record and everything, but I wanted to win as well. That was the main focus of the whole day and that makes it that much better."

A reserved player when it comes to individual accolades, he said he was keeping his game jersey and shoes, acknowledging the significance of the achievement as a testament to the effort he's put into his game and his team over his NBA career thus far.

"I've been putting a lot of hard work into this franchise and it's starting to pay off," Bosh said.

While the Raptors were without starter Hedo Turkoglu, who was battling upper respiratory issues, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich brought Tim Duncan off of the bench, saying he wanted his star fresh for the fourth quarter after he had played big minutes the night before in Washington.

It was just the second time in Duncan's 929-game career that he hadn't started a game.

"I played in the Western Conference for thee years and Coach Popovich is a quirky guy," said Raptors guard Jarrett Jack when asked if the move surprised him. "He might do things just because it's Tuesday. Coach Pop is just a quirky dude."

With Duncan out of the lineup to start the game, Tony Parker was the only Spurs player able to hit anything, shooting 6-for-7 from the floor in the opening quarter while the rest of his teammates combined to connect on just 3-for-17 attempts.

When Duncan came into the game early in the second quarter, his team trailed by 10 points and their struggles on the offensive end continued as the team went 9:20 minutes without a field goal, allowing the Raptors built up a 14-point halftime advantage.

The Raptors led by as many as 17 points in the third before San Antonio began mounting their comeback in the final quarter.

After shooting just 37 percent through three, the Spurs connected on 11-for-21 field goals in the fourth while outscoring Toronto 31-24. What they could not correct, however, were their free throws. With the game on the line down the stretch, Duncan missed four free throws and the Spurs as a team missed five in the quarter, the point differential in the game.

"Our problem was that we didn't knock down shots," Popovich said. "We shot the same number of free throws. They made 24 out of 27 and we made 16. In a way, that's the ballgame right there."

While Parker started out on fire, he scored just two points in the fourth quarter, finishing with 23 on the night. Despite sitting the first quarter, Duncan finished with 21 points and 12 rebounds, but wasn't happy with mental mistakes and missed free throws.

"We kept making enough plays to put ourselves right back into it and every time we made a play to get right back into it, it seemed like we either made an offensive foul or we missed something easy or we missed free throws," Duncan said. "We just kind of shot ourselves in the foot."

While Andrea Bargnani had a rough shooting night from the floor, he still finished with 15 points, eight rebounds and five blocked shots. Jack added 16 points to go along with eight assists. With the victory, the Raptors improved to 11-5 at the Air Canada Centre.

Jack said the loss to a depleted Celtics team the night before hadn't sat well with anyone in the Raptors locker room.

"I don't think anybody had a good taste in their mouth after what happened in Boston," Jack said. "We definitely wanted to come back here and redeem ourselves."

The win was a big one for the Raptors before they head to Orlando, where a win against the Magic would move the Raptors back to .500.
For the rest of Sunday evening however, Bosh was content to reflect on his big day.

"This is the position you want to be in. ...I've been really blessed to be a focal point and I think that's really cool," Bosh said. "It's crazy that it's actually happened because I've dreamt about it so much. I'm living a dream."

A dream Raptors fans hope continues past the summer of 2010.

[TJastal]

"He's played a lot of minutes," coach Gregg Popovich said of Duncan. "He played more than we wanted last night so we just wanted to have him in the fourth quarter rather than the first. Not too much happens in the first quarter of NBA games."

This is such sound brilliant logic.

Yah, bring him in after the spurs are in a huge hole so Tim has to literally break his back digging the team out of the mess. That's some Pop-logic alright.

[angel_luv]

I am sorry I missed this game. I could have gone to the Lion and Rose and watched it.

n/m. I just realized that neither Sho nor Hedo played.

[ploto]

Eh, outside the Spurs, those other 5 wins come against mediocre .500 teams or lower...

And whom have the Spurs beaten lately??

[ploto]

I am sorry I missed this game. I could have gone to the Lion and Rose and watched it.

n/m. I just realized that neither Sho nor Hedo played.

Hedo's sick.

[TJastal]

I guess this shows just how much the raptors miss Turkoglu, in other words, not a whole helluva lot.

[ElNono]

And whom have the Spurs beaten lately??

You have to beat shitty teams too... look at what the Lakers did to the Mavs last night for example... :p: