Derozan scores 34 to send Raptors past Celtics
Toronto Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan (10) tries to keep the ball from Boston Celtics guard Avery Bradley (0) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Toronto on Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016. AP
TORONTO, Canada—DeMar DeRozan scored 34 points and Jonas Valanciunas had his eighth double-double with 19 points and 12 rebounds as the Toronto Raptors won their season-high sixth straight game, 115-109 over the Boston Celtics on Wednesday night.
Luis Scola chipped in with 18 points and Kyle Lowry added 14 for the Raptors.
Boston guard Isaiah Thomas had his fifth double-double of the season with 21 points and 10 assists. Avery Bradley added another 19 points for the Celtics.
Back-to-back baskets from Thomas and another from Bradley knotted the score at 105 with just 3:20 to play, but 3-pointers on consecutive possessions from Lowry and Terrence Ross re-established a four-point Toronto advantage with 2:16 remaining.
Jae Crowder gave Boston hope with a pull-up jumper following a timeout with just over a minute to play, but DeRozan answered with one of his own to maintain the four-point edge with 46.9 seconds to go. The Raptors then closed it out on a pair of free-throws from Lowry.
The Raptors had previously beaten the Celtics 113-103 in Boston in their only other meeting so far this season.
The Raptors jumped to an early lead behind the scoring of Scola and DeRozan, as the home team shot 65.2 percent from the floor to jump into a 35-27 lead.
Boston responded in the second quarter, taking advantage of some less-than-stellar Toronto defense to shoot 14 of 20 from the floor, including 5 of 7 from beyond the three-point line. They led 62-56 at halftime.
But with all the starters back on the floor to begin the third, Toronto resumed its red-hot shooting. DeRozan scored 18 in the quarter to send the Raptors into the final 12 minutes with a 96-90 lead.
