Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby help Raptors break 9-game slide
FILE — Pascal Siakam #43 of the Toronto Raptors dunks during a game against the Sacramento Kings at Amalie Arena on January 29, 2021 in Tampa, Florida. Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images/AFP
Pascal Siakam scored 16 of his 27 points in the first quarter and grabbed eight rebounds as the Toronto Raptors defeated the visiting Denver Nuggets 135-111 at Tampa Wednesday night to end a nine-game losing streak.
OG Anunoby added 23 points for the Raptors, who won for the first time since Feb. 26. Norman Powell contributed 22 points, Fred VanVleet had 19 points and Paul Watson scored 12 points. Kyle Lowry had eight points, nine assists and five rebounds.
The Raptors made 24 of 48 3-point attempts in giving the Nuggets their largest loss of the season.
20+ for Pascal, OG and Norm in the @Raptors win! #WeTheNorth @pskills43: 27 PTS, 8 REB, 6 AST @OAnunoby: 23 PTS, 5 3PM@npowell2404: 22 PTS (8-12 FGM) pic.twitter.com/vrPte49ExF
— NBA (@NBA) March 25, 2021
Nikola Jokic scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Nuggets, who lost for only the third time in the past 12 games. Jamal Murray added 20 points and had seven rebounds, Michael Porter Jr. had 19 points and eight rebounds and Paul Millsap scored 11 points.
The Nuggets had won their previous six road games to match their franchise record. Denver opened a three-game road trip with a victory over the Orlando Magic on Tuesday.
The Raptors, who led by as many as 24 points in the second quarter, took a 17-point lead into the fourth quarter. Siakam had the lead up to 21 with 10:45 to play, and Watson hit two 3-pointers in a row to put the Raptors out of reach at 119-87 with 7:54 to go.
The Raptors made their first five 3-point attempts and led 38-30 after the first quarter. Toronto led 55-36 after Anunoby made a layup with 6:37 to play in the second quarter.
Toronto went into halftime ahead 72-54. The 18-point margin was the biggest halftime deficit for the Nuggets this season.
The Raptors led 82-60 after Lowry’s 3-pointer with 9:39 to play in the third quarter. A 6-0 surge brought the Nuggets to within 17 points. VanVleet’s 3-pointer with 4:19 to go in the third had the lead back to 22. Porter completed the quarter scoring with a putback layup to cut the lead to 98-71.
