The Toronto Raptors notched their second win in a row defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves 110-105.
Scottie Barnes is back
Barnes returned from an orbital fracture he suffered last month that caused him to miss the team’s last 11 games. The Raptors played Barnes at the point and decided to bench Davion Mitchell instead of Ochai Agbaji. It didn’t take the 23-year-old long to get back into the flow of things. On the Raptors first offensive possession of the game, Barnes pushed the ball up the floor and found a cutting Gradey Dick for the bucket. Barnes was on a minutes restriction, but he still looked solid. He finished with 17 points and 6 assists in 27 minutes of action. In the fourth quarter, Barnes led the way for the Raptors and he hit a clutch fadeaway jumper over Jaden McDaniels to put Toronto up 4 points. The Raptors then clamped down defensively and went on a 17-3 run midway through the fourth. With Barnes back in the mix the Raptors are a completely different team.
RJ Barrett is playing on another level
Barrett has been playing at an elite level as of late. He led the Raptors with 31 points on 10-for-14 shooting from the field to go along with 7 rebounds and 3 assists. Without Barnes, Barrett did a good job of leading the Raptors over the past three weeks. With Barnes back, Barrett looked just as deadly. He got downhill and into the paint even with Rudy Gobert guarding. He also continued to thrive in the pick-and-roll game with Jakob Poeltl. When the Timberwolves took a 7-point lead into the third quarter, Barrett had an answer. In the fourth quarter, he continued his attack. He also finished an alley-oop pass from Gradey Dick to give the Raptors a nine-point lead with less than three minutes to go. Barrett has been impressive and continues to lead the Raptors offensive charge.
Bench came up big
The Raptors bench play was a big difference in this one. Chris Boucher dropped 22 points in 26 minutes for Toronto. He hit a game-tying three-pointer with over five minutes to go in the fourth quarter. Also, Jonathan Mogbo stepped up when Jakob Poeltl got in foul and scored 6 points to go along with 7 rebounds in 19 minutes.
Next on tap
The Raptors will look for their third straight win when they travel to Cleveland to take on the Cavaliers on Nov. 24.
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