Sports

Raptors rip Clippers for 8th straight win

Associated Press

January 24, 2016 | 9:26pm

TORONTO – Kyle Lowry scored 21 points and Jonas Valanciunas had 20 as the Toronto Raptors beat the Los Angeles Clippers 112-94 on Sunday (Monday in Manila) for their season-high eighth straight win.

DeMar DeRozan and Terrence Ross both added 18 points each for the Raptors. Ross shot 5 for 7 on 3-pointers and totaled at least 10 points off the bench for the fourth straight game.

Chris Paul had 23 points and 11 assists for the Clippers, and DeAndre Jordan had 15 and 13 rebounds. JJ Redick scored 17 points for Los Angeles.

The Raptors beat the Clippers for the fourth straight time, completing a second straight season sweep. It also marked the first time in franchise history the Raptors swept both Los Angeles teams in the same season, having beaten the Lakers in both meetings already.

The Raptors' winning streak is the second-longest in franchise history, one short of the team-record set in the 2001-02 season.

Even without star forward Blake Griffin, who has now missed 14 consecutive games with a strained left quad, the Clippers came in with 12 wins in their last 14 - including 11-2 in Griffin's absence.

Toronto's depth proved decisive on Sunday though with the Raptors' reserves outscoring their Clippers counterparts 51-29.

Seven Raptors players scored in double figures, with Lowry and Ross going a combined 8 for 13 from beyond the 3-point line. The Raptors shot 54.5 percent from beyond the arc Sunday, in contrast to the Clippers' 30.8 mark.

After topping 30 points in each of the last three games, DeRozan's hot hand showed no signs of slowing down early as he connected on his first four shots from the field and another two from the free-throw line. He finished the first quarter with 13 points, but no other teammate had more than four.

A more balanced offense saw the Clippers shoot 58.3 percent from the field and 4 for 6 on 3s to take a 34-27 lead.

A 17-3 run to start the second quarter pushed Toronto back in front, and 26 points from the reserves and 5-for-7 shooting on 3s helped the Raptors take a 62-49 lead at halftime.

It was the sixth time this season the Raptors have put up at least 60 points in the first half.

Toronto started the third quarter slowly, missing seven of its first 10 shots, but after allowing the Clippers to get within four points at one point the Raptors surged late on to take a 83-71 lead into the fourth.

TIP-INS

Clippers: The newest Clipper, Jeff Ayres played five minutes and registering two points on free throws. Ayres signed a 10-day contract on Saturday. He had previously been playing for the Idaho Stampede of the NBA Development League, averaging 16.3 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists while appearing in 23 games. The power forward has previously played in 220 NBA games with Portland, Indiana and San Antonio, winning a championship with the Spurs in 2013-14. ... Before Sunday's game, Chris Paul has averaged 10.6 assists per game against the Raptors, the most of any player against Toronto in the franchise's history.

Raptors: Toronto is now 9-7 against Western Conference teams this season, including six wins against four of the top five teams in the conference (San Antonio and Oklahoma City once each, and the Clippers and Dallas twice each).

UP NEXT

Clippers visit Indiana while the Raptors host Washington on Tuesday night (Wednesday in Manila).