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The Toronto Raptors outshot the Oklahoma City Thunder for 48 minutes Thursday at Scotiabank Arena en route to a 128-111 victory.
Nick Nurse's squad won each of the quarters of the game and took off in the last period thanks to a quality collective effort. All members of the “Raps” starting five had at least 16 points.
Pascal Siakam (25 points, 14 rebounds) and Jakob Poeltl (16 points, 12 rebounds) led the way with a double -double each. The latter notably managed a spectacular “slam dunk” in the second quarter, after receiving a fine pass from Scottie Barnes.
This is a second consecutive win for the Raptors. They came within half a game of the Atlanta Hawks and eighth place in the Eastern Conference of the NBA.
As for the Thunder, who had won six of their seven previous duels, the Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continued his momentum and was the only player who posed a real problem for the “Raps”. The player with the fifth-best points-per-game average on the Silver circuit collected 29.
As for him, Montrealer Luguentz Dort had some efficiency problems at the basket. He made just one of his six shots from downtown and added 10 points to the board. His eight rebounds and five assists are not to be overlooked, however.
The Queen City team will host the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday.