Toronto's big men shine as Raptors eclipse Suns

Rudi Schuller

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Toronto's big men shine as Raptors eclipse Suns image

DeMar DeRozan scored 37 points to lead the Toronto Raptors to a 115-109 victory over a pesky Phoenix Suns team in Arizona on Wednesday night.

DeRozan led a Raptors surge in the third quarter, scoring 18 points in the frame. Toronto entered the fourth quarter with a 14-point advantage and appeared to headed for a second straight blowout of the Suns, but Phoenix battled back over the final 12 minutes to provide a suitable scare for the Canadian team.

However, DeRozan's offensive output, combined with the work of Serge Ibaka and Jonas Valanciunas — who put up 41 points and 24 rebounds between them — proved to be too much for the lowly Suns, who dropped to 9-21.

The Raptors, third in the Eastern Conference, improved to 18-8.

Bigs combine well

It's been accepted since Ibaka's arrival in Toronto last season that he and Valanciunas can't play together, but on Wednesday the two big men showed that they may finally be starting to find some chemistry.

Ibaka and Valanciunas spent a considerable amount of time alongside one another, especially in the first half. Their combined presence caused havoc for the Suns, and they even both managed to be perfect from beyond the arc.

Valanciunas drained his only three-point attempt, which helped him to a 15-point first half. Ibaka was 3-for-3 from beyond the arc.

Cold Kyle

Lowry continued his run of poor shooting, with the three-time all-star guard waiting until the third quarter to nail a successful field goal attempt.

He went into the locker room at halftime with just two points (both from free throws), and finished the game a dreadful 25 percent from the field.

Fortunately for the Raptors, Lowry was still effective in other ways. He dished seven assists and was a workhorse defensively, finishing at +12 on the night.

Rudi Schuller