Blown leads have been chasing the Raptors like that winter long cold you just can’t seem to shake.
Well, the Raptors found the cure … but just. It was a 30-point lead midway through the second quarter and the Raptors needed almost every bit of it.
The Thunder got that lead all the way down to three with 2:39 to go before the Raptors tuned out the crowd and Kyle Lowry went into no-lose mode.
Lowry hit the final two shots for the Raptors, part of a 17-point night as they staved off the third, and this would have been the biggest comeback, rally by an opponent in the past four matches.
A 30-point lead by the Raptors who were absolutely cooking in every facet of the game for most of the night, got all the way down to a three-point lead twice in the final three minutes before the visitors calmed things down and put away the Oklahoma City Thunder.
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The 130-121 final was almost deceiving if you watched this one in real time.
Backed by a frenzied crowd smelling a comeback of epic proportions, the Thunder got hot from the outside and almost rode it to a victory.
Late baskets from Pascal Siakam and Kyle Lowry ended the runs and the Thunder never got any closer.
It marked the third match in the past four that the Raptors have had some major slippage in the fourth quarter. Earlier in the week they suffered home losses to both Portland and San Antonio sandwiched around an overtime victory in Charlotte.
This one would have made it three in four games, but for some real patience and perseverance by the Raptors that saved them from another big blown lead.
The team shot a season best 61.2% from the field and a season-best 55.6% from behind the arc. Three players, led by the 23 from Norm Powell off the bench, finished in the 20’s in scoring while four others were in double digits.
The only real flaw on the night, and it wasn’t a small one, was the 19 Toronto turnovers that led to 33 OKC points.
