TORONTO - The game, according to DeMar DeRozan, was the kind that players live for.
http://www.mexiconationalshop.com/Raul-Jimenez-Copa-America-Jersey/ . The ending was not. Kevin Durant calmly drained a three-pointer with 1.7
seconds left to lift the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 119-118 victory over the
Toronto Raptors in double overtime on Friday. The buzzer-beating bomb from 31
feet out capped a 51-point performance by Durant, the leagues top scorer. Still,
DeRozan said there was plenty to take from the game that almost became the
Raptors second win this season against one of the best in the West. "Thats a
helluva Western Conference team right there, and we fought with them to the end,
we were blow for blow," DeRozan said. "It came down to the last shot, those are
the types of games you live for. "We cant win every game and we wish we would
have got that one, but it still was a helluva game." DeRozan scored 33 points to
top the Raptors (38-30) in just their sixth loss at home in 22 outings.
Kyle Lowry added 25 points, including a three-pointer that forced a second
overtime period, while Amir Johnson had 25 points and 12 rebounds, and
Greivis Vasquez finished with 21 points. Reggie Jackson added 25 points for the
Thunder (51-18), while Russell Westbrook had 15 points before leaving the game
in the third quarter with yet another knee injury. Durant extended his scoring
streak — of at least 25 points a game — to 34 consecutive games. Its the leagues
longest scoring streak since Michael Jordans 40-game run in 1986-87. "Straight
up, that was the craziest game Ive ever been a part of," Durant said. With the
capacity crowd of 19,800 fans on their feet, and a playoff vibe palpable at the
Air Canada Centre in the game that saw 23 lead changes, the Raptors dominated
the second overtime period to nearly secure the hard-fought win. DeRozan pumped
a victorious fist when he scored on a pullup jumper with 2:37 left to put
Toronto up by five. Fans chanted "M-V-P!" when Lowry stepped up to the line to
sink two free throws that gave Toronto an eight-point lead. But the Thunder
rallied to pull within two on a three by Derek Fisher with 15.7 seconds left,
then John Salmons missed on two free throws that surely would have sealed the
victory for Toronto. Then, with Johnson on Durant, the Thunder superstar pulled
up and calmly launched his second three of the games final minute to send
Torontos fans home unhappy. "Yeah, yeah. . . I thought we had it," DeRozan said.
"Just give us one of those threes and the game is ours." Added coach Dwane
Casey: "Great players make great plays and (Durant) made a great shot." DeRozan
said that during a third-quarter timeout, Johnson had asked Casey if he could
guard Durant. "It means a lot, man," DeRozan said of his teammates request. "Ive
got the utmost respect for him. . .That takes a lot of guts to go out there and
play great defence. Got to give it to K.D., he made a lot of tough shots."
Johnson said he thought he might be able to throw Durant off with his height.
Both Johnson and Durant are six foot nine. "It was tough, hes my height out
there shooting from halfcourt, theres not too much you can do but double team
that," Johnson said. "It just came down to the stretch where he hit one off the
glass (with 47 seconds left) and then that last shot was a tough shot. What can
I say about that? It was just a tough shot." The game had gone into a second
overtime tied 107-107 thanks to a three-pointer by Lowry with seven seconds
left. The game might have been bad news for Westbrook, who sprained his
surgically-repaired right knee and with 7:37 left in the third quarter. Lowry
had inadvertently bumped into the same knee the Thunder player had undergone his
third surgery on in late December. Lowry apologized to Westbrook, as he was
being helped to the locker-room by teammate Hasheem Thabeet. Westbrook had sat
out the Thunders 102-95 win at Cleveland the previous night to rest his
troublesome knee. Westbrook insisted afterward that he didnt expect to miss any
time. "Well just see how it goes," he said. "It was fun," he added on the game.
"I was in the back wishing I could go out there and help them out but as you
see, Kevin took care of that." The Raptors trailed Oklahoma City 72-71 going
into the fourth quarter in a scrappy see-saw affair that saw 22 lead changes.
The Thunder stretched their lead to seven points when Jackson chucked up an
alley-oop to Durant for a dunk with 9:14 left to play. Toronto chipped away at
it, eventually taking a 90-89 lead with 3:08 left after a thrilling 30-second
segment that saw five points and a steal from DeRozan, and a basket by Johnson.
The Raptors were trailing by three with just under a minute to go when Johnson
hit one of two free throws then a layup with 17 seconds to go to send the game
into the first extra period 96-96. The Raptors had beaten the Thunder 104-98 on
Dec. 22 at Oklahoma, ending the Thunders 13-game unbeaten streak at home. That
victory was one of the Raptors first significant wins after they overhauled
their roster in a seven-player deal, and their solid play has continued as
theyre poised to make the post-season for the first time in six years. Durant
and the Thunder got some revenge Friday. Asked about Durants game-winning shot,
Westbrook said: "Just letting it all hang out. Hes been doing that all season
and tonight it was a win or go home. Hes playing at an MVP level as hes been
doing all season." Durant and Westbrook scored eight points apiece in a first
quarter that saw the lead change hands several times and neither team lead by
more than five. Durant scored on a stepback jumper with seven second to go to
send the Thunder into the second half with a 22-20 lead. The Raptors held their
visitors to 24 per cent shooting in the second quarter, and a stepback jumper by
Vasquez put the Raptors up by eight about four minutes into the frame. Westbrook
drained a three with 1.9 seconds left to cut Torontos lead to 46-42 at halftime.
Durant had 14 points in a third quarter that saw the lead change hands nine
times, and the Thunder led by one heading into the fourth. NOTES: The Raptors
had won six of their previous seven games against Western Conference teams. . .
The Thunder have won 12 of 14 games on the road against Eastern Conference
competition. . . Three-time world figure skating champion Patrick Chan was at
the game. He was presented with a No. 14 Chan jersey. . . The Raptors host the
Atlanta Hawks on Sunday, a game that marks the return of The Raptor. The team
mascot ruptured an Achilles tendon during training camp.
http://www.mexiconationalshop.com/Carlos-Pena-Copa-America-Jersey/ . The Canadians opened their European tour Saturday with a 27-19 loss to France
in Pontarlier. The tour wraps up Nov. 13 with a game against England.
http://www.mexiconationalshop.com/Javier-Aquino-Copa-America-Jersey/ .ca presents its latest weekly power rankings for the 2013-14 Barclays Premier
League season. WASHINGTON -- Gavin Floyd had never heard the name of the piece
of bone he broke inside his elbow. Manager Fredi Gonzalez didnt even try to
pronounce it. But no matter how you say "olecranon," it spells more bad news for
the Atlanta Braves pitching staff. Floyd, recently recovered from elbow ligament
replacement surgery, fractured the bony tip of the forearm bone that sticks out
behind the elbow when he threw a curveball to lead off the seventh inning of
Thursday nights 3-0 win over the Washington Nationals. "It was fine until that
last pitch," Floyd said. "I felt a pop." Its the latest setback for an
injury-riddled staff that lost starters Kris Medlen and Brandon Beachy and
reliever Cory Gearrin to Tommy John surgery during spring training, upending a
major plank in the Braves plans to repeat as NL East champions. "Its been a
tough one, ever since spring training," third baseman Chris Johnson said. "But
weve got to keep moving forward. Hopefully its nothing too bad and we can get
him back soon." Floyd will return to Atlanta on Friday to be examined by team
doctors. The injury is so rare that the Braves couldnt provide even a guess of a
timetable for his return. A similar injury ended the career of Detroit Tigers
reliever Joel Zumaya in 2010. "In the big picture, I think hes going to be OK,"
Gonzalez said. Floyd flexed his pitching arm awkwardly after the fateful pitch,
which turned into a long foul ball by Jayson Werth down the left field line.
After an examination by the Braves trainer on the mound, Floyd left the game for
reliever Anthony Varvaro. "It was a weird spot," Floyd said. "It was a little
sore before, but not in the area that I had surgery." Floyd (2-2) was making his
ninth start since recovering from Tommy John surgery, but Gonzalez said the two
injuries are not related. "What a shame," Gonzalez said. "The guy comes all the
way back from Tommy John. ... I feel for the young man." Floyd had been working
on a two-hit shutout. He threw only 64 pitches, walking one and striking out six
to drop his ERA to 2.65 in his first season with Atlanta. "Thats the best Ive
seen him look," Johnson said. "For those first six innings, he was dealing, he
was nasty, so thats really a tough break." Floyds career record is 72-72 over 11
seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago White Sox and Braves. "I feltt
like I was getting better and better, so its definitely disappointing," Floyd
said.
http://www.mexiconationalshop.com/Rafael-Marquez-Copa-America-Jersey/. "Definitely not what I envisioned to happen. I havent had any pain since the
surgery." The win moved the Braves within a half-game of the first-place
Nationals atop the NL East as the division rivals opened a four-game series.
Atlanta had been trending downward recently, losing eight of 12 entering the
series. Johnson drove in all three of the Braves runs, two on a bases-loaded
single in the fourth and another on a line drive that smacked reliever
Jerry Blevins left knee in the eighth. Blevins was examined by the Nationals
trainer but remained in the game to face one more batter. Jordan Zimmermann
(5-4), coming off consecutive complete games, had his second straight hard-luck
start for the Nationals. He lost 1-0 to Lance Lynn and the St. Louis Cardinals
last Friday, and this time he allowed only two runs and seven hits through seven
innings. Zimmermann has also had Tommy John surgery and naturally empathized
with Floyd. "You never want another pitcher to get injured. I dont know what
really happened," Zimmermann said. "Obviously, it was bad enough for him to come
out of the game. Hopefully, hell be all right." NOTES: Evan Gattis extended his
hitting streak to 18 games -- the longest active streak in the majors and best
ever by a Braves catcher. ... Craig Kimbrel picked up his 21st save for the
Braves, who have won 23 of 30 against the Nationals. ... Nationals OF
Bryce Harper took on-field batting practice before the game for the first time
since undergoing thumb surgery last month. Hes expected to begin a minor league
rehab assignment next week before re-joining the team in mid-July. . Nationals
Manager Matt Williams said C Wilson Ramos (strained right hamstring) should be
ready to re-join the team when eligible to come off of the DL June 26. Ramos
will begin a rehab assignment over the weekend or the beginning of next week. .
Braves OF Justin Upton was out of the starting lineup for the second straight
game with an inner ear ailment causing dizziness, but he appeared as
pinch-hitter in the eighth inning and grounded out. . The Braves placed RHP
Pedro Beato on the DL with a sore right elbow. He was called up to the Braves
earlier this week and pitched in relief both Tuesday and Wednesday. The Braves
promoted RHP Juan Jaime from Triple-A Gwinnett, his first call-up to the majors.
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