Raptors push winning streak to eight by blasting Clippers’ bench

TORONTO – The way the Raptors started the game it looked like their winning streak was going to end at seven straight. Then the Los Angeles Clippers went to their bench to start the second and fourth quarter and Toronto took full advantage, crushing the Clippers’ reserves over two extended stretches on their way 112-94 win to make it eight wins in a row, one shy of equalling a franchise-record.

There was also the extra satisfaction of beating Raptors nemesis Paul Pierce, who was greeted with a chorus of boos by the fans at the Air Canada Centre when the starting lineups were announced.

It looked like those Clippers starters were going to be too much for Toronto to handle. The Raptors’ offence was disjointed early, relying too much on DeMar DeRozan isolation plays to score. DeRozan accounted for 13 of Toronto’s 27 points in the first quarter. It wasn’t much better on the defensive end, as the Raptors had trouble defending Chris Paul running the pick-and-roll with DeAndre Jordan and finding J.J. Redick for open shots off screens and Toronto trailed 34-27 after one.

The tide turned instantly when the Clippers started the second quarter with a lineup consisting of five reserves and the Raptors’ unit with Kyle Lowry and four bench players – Cory Joseph, Terrence Ross, Patrick Patterson, and Bismack Biyombo – pounced. They outscored Los Angeles 27-8 over seven and a half minutes, helping build the 60-49 lead they took into halftime.

"I thought when Cory and that second group it changed the game," said head coach Dwane Casey. "I thought we got off to a sluggish start, which has been the opposite of what our starters had been doing … I thought the second unit got a togetherness, and a rhythm, and a chemistry going that we’re going to need as we go down the road."

Paul and the Clippers’ starters attempted to get their team back in it in the second half, cutting the deficit to as low as four points, but Lowry and the reserves did it again at the start of the fourth. The Clippers ran out the same lineup the Raptors pounded in the second quarter and the result was very much the same. A 12-lead became a 22-lead in just over five minutes, putting the game out of reach by the time Paul, Redick, and Jordan returned.

Lowry (+11) was the only Raptors starter with a positive plus/minus rating while every Clippers starter was on the positive side of the ledger. Toronto’s four bench players who played over 20 minutes thrived on their personal strengths and that’s what made the difference. Ross (+25) led the way with 18 points (5-for-7 from three) and four steals, Biyombo (+24) grabbed nine rebounds and chipped in with 10 points, while Joseph (+33) scored 12 and Patterson (+31) had 10.

"[Ross] was phenomenal beyond the arc and also playing defence. [Biyombo] rebounding like a machine as always and finishing around the rim. [Joseph] being a general and leading us out there on the court and getting lay-ups attacking the rim." said Patterson. "Myself, hitting some threes, moving the ball on the offensive side, [making] a couple stops on the defensive end. All of us [we’re] communicating on the defensive side and I think tonight was one of our best collectively as a second unit."

The best teams in the NBA are able to depend on their role players to play big roles in wins throughout the season and it appears the Raptors absolutely have a bench they can count on.

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Israel Fehr is a writer for Yahoo Canada Sports. Email him at israelfehr@yahoo.ca or follow him on Twitter. Follow @israelfehr