By Michael Wagaman | The Associated Press
OAKLAND, California—Kyle Lowry had 23 points and 12 assists to lead a balanced Toronto offense while leading scorer Kawhi Leonard sat out, Serge Ibaka added 20 points and the Raptors dominated Golden State from the start, routing the Warriors, 113-93, on Wednesday night to complete a season sweep.
Danny Green scored 15 points, Pascal Siakam had 13 and Fred VanVleet added 10 to help the Raptors improve to a National Basketball Association (NBA)-best 23-7, matching the best start in franchise history.
They did it despite not having Leonard for a second consecutive night. Toronto’s star forward has a sore right hip and was questionable before the game before being ruled out less than 30 minutes before tip-off.
The Raptors also lost 7-foot center Jonas Valanciunas to a dislocated left thumb in the first half.
Kevin Durant had 30 points, seven rebounds and five assists for Golden State. The Warriors had won four straight heading into a much-anticipated showdown between two teams many expect to reach the NBA Finals.
Despite playing the second half of a back-to-back following a 123-99 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday, Toronto appeared to be the fresher team. The Raptors repeatedly beat the sluggish Warriors to loose balls and outrebounded the two-time defending champs, 48-40.
It was Toronto’s first win in Oakland since February 8, 2004.
The Raptors beat the Warriors in overtime earlier this season behind a season-high 37 points from Leonard. Golden State didn’t have Stephen Curry or Draymond Green for that game, but both were back for the rematch while Leonard sat out.
It hardly mattered.
Toronto led by 18 in the first half and was up, 93-67, early in the fourth following a three-point play by Greg Monroe. Warriors Coach Steve Kerr benched his starters midway through the fourth as the Oracle Arena crowd filed for the exits.
Curry scored 10 points on 3-of-12 shooting. Green was 1 for 5 and finished with two points as Golden State went 6 for 26 on three-pointers.
KINGS ARE CLICKING
SACRAMENTO Coach Dave Joerger wants his team used its speed to run right past its opponents.
When the Kings are clicking, it’s hard to slow them down.
Nemanja Bjelica made four of Sacramento’s franchise-record 19 three-pointers and finished with 25 points, helping the Kings beat the Minnesota Timberwolves, 141-130, on Wednesday night.
Sacramento shot a season-best 58.1 percent (50 for 86) from the field in its fifth win in six games. It also had 33 fast-break points.
“I think it was probably a pretty exciting game to watch if you’re a fan—we enjoyed it as well,” Joerger said. “Ball was moving. We’re better when we attack.”
Buddy Hield and Bogdan Bogdanovic each scored 20 points for Sacramento, and rookie Marvin Bagley III had 17 points and 10 rebounds.
Andrew Wiggins scored 25 points for Minnesota, and reserve Derrick Rose finished with 20. Karl-Anthony Towns had 19 points and 11 rebounds.
The Timberwolves remained winless in 10 road games against Western Conference opponents. They have just two road wins this season, tied for second worst in the NBA.
“We score 130 points—80 in the second half—shoot over 50 percent and lose. The disappointment is in our defense,” Timberwolves Coach Tom Thibodeau said. “You can’t jog back against them. We did that and they got easy baskets.”
The athletic Kings had seven players score in double figures. Hield made five threes, part of a 19-for-38 performance from behind the arc for Sacramento.
The Kings led 63-50 at halftime, but the Timberwolves opened the third quarter with 11 straight points and 21 of 26 overall. Sacramento then responded with 11 straight points, including consecutive three-pointers by Iman Shumpert, and never trailed again.
The Kings opened the fourth quarter with a 16-7 run, including three three-pointers by Yogi Ferrell, to open a 13-point lead.
“They ran the floor fast, they never stopped. We just had to make it hard for them and try to take things away from them, but we didn’t really do that,” Wiggins said. “They made a lot of shots. We could have done better at taking it away from them and forcing them off the line. So it’s back to the drawing board.”
Image credits: AP