Off Topic » ams said. "We missed a lot of shots, layups in the pain

NEW ORLEANS -- Greivis Vasquez drew a round of applause when he first checked in against the team for which he played the past two seasons. Later, he all but silenced the New Orleans crowd with five straight points that gave his new team the lead for good inside the final two minutes. DeMar DeRozan scored 31 points, Vasquez finished with 14, and the Toronto Raptors snapped a two-game skid with a resilient 107-100 victory over the Pelicans on Wednesday night. "I was blessed enough to be out there at the end of the game," said Vasquez, who was traded by New Orleans after last season in a deal that brought Tyreke Evans to the Pelicans. "I had a really rough first half and then the second half I was just on a mission," Vasquez said. "I like close games, man. Im not afraid. I would never be afraid. Im the type of player that would risk everything. Thats how I got (the starting point guard) job here in New Orleans." Kyle Lowry scored 23, Amir Johnson added 17 and Vasquez finished with 14 to help Toronto overcome a 14-point first-half deficit and snap a two-game skid. Tyler Hansbrough, playing additional minutes with starting centre Jonas Valanciunas sidelined by a sore back, grabbed 13 rebounds, seven on the offensive end. "Thats psycho-T at his finest," DeRozan said of Hansbrough. "He went out there, played extremely hard, got rebounds and came up with some big rebounds late in the game. Thats just him." The game was tied at 94 when Vasquez scored five straight points in a 36-second span on a running floater and a driving layup as he was fouled -- the latter coming after Vasquez rebounded his missed jumper for one of Torontos 22 offensive rebounds. "Its cool to have a teammate like that because you see how much he wanted it," DeRozan said of Vasquez. "Thats why we call him Spicy. You never know what youre going to get until you eat it." Al-Farouq Aminu had 19 points and 10 rebounds for New Orleans, which was without All-Star Anthony Davis because of an illness. The Pelicans could not deny that Davis absence, one game after his career-high 40 points and 21 rebounds in Sundays overtime win over Boston, was a factor. "Obviously, with a guy that can rebound like Anthony, its hard to make up for that," rookie centre Jeff Withey said. Evans had 18 points for the Pelicans. Eric Gordon added 15, but was shut out in the second half, when his playing time was limited after he was called for his fourth foul in the middle of the third quarter. "Once he got in foul trouble ... I think that probably broke his rhythm," Pelicans coach Monty Williams said. Brian Roberts scored 11 points, while Alexis Ajinca and Austin Rivers each had 10 to keep New Orleans in front for most of the game. New Orleans led 94-90 on Witheys free throw with 4:26 left. But during the next 50 seconds, Johnson slammed home a putback dunk and followed that with a driving layup as the shot clock expired to tie it at 94. Next came Vasquezs five straight points, followed by Lowrys free throw and Johnsons tip shot to cap a 12-1 run from which New Orleans never recovered. "We played decent defence, forced them to miss and they got rebound after rebound," Williams said. "We missed a lot of shots, layups in the paint, but the rebounding tonight was not good at all." Gordon, Aminu (12 points) and Evans (10 points) all reached double figures in the first half, much of which was controlled by New Orleans. The Pelicans seemed to surprise the Atlantic Division-leading Raptors by racing to an early double-digit lead. Rivers driving layup gave New Orleans a 31-18 lead late in the first quarter. In the second quarter, the lead reached 14 points several times, the last on Aminus layup that made it 50-36. At that point, there was 5:20 left in the second quarter, which was about all the time Toronto needed to nearly pull even. The Raptors outscored the Pelicans 20-7 to close the half. DeRozan scored nine during the stint, including a three-point play on a driving layup and a 12-foot fade at the halftime horn that made it 57-56. NOTES: The Pelicans went 3-3 on their six-game home stand. New Orleans next plays at Atlanta on Friday, then hosts Miami on Saturday to open a four-game home stand. ... The Raptors have not lost three straight since making a seven-player trade with Sacramento on Dec. 9. Clarence Weatherspoon 76ers Jersey . Geovany Soto had an RBI for the Cubs. Carlos Silva gave up one run on three hits over six innings to pick up the win. Josh Willingham drove in the lone run for the Nationals, who had just four hits. Clarence Weatherspoon Jersey . Huntington doesnt want to help run the club unless Hurdle is in the dugout. The combination thats returned the franchise to respectability will remain intact for years to come. http://www.76ersprostore.info/Cheap-Juli...g-76ers-Jersey/. - Washington Redskins tight end Fred Davis said Wednesday hes "nodded off" during meetings, but he said its something every player does. Ben Simmons Jersey . Noah finished with 13 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists in 34 minutes. He was headed for his fourth triple-double of the season, but sat down with about three minutes left because of the lopsided score. Kirk Hinrich scored 19 points for Chicago, going 5 for 6 on 3-pointers, Carlos Boozer added 18 points, D. Maurice Cheeks 76ers Jersey . Gauteng High Court Judge Dunstan Mlambo ruled Tuesday that South African media houses will be allowed to install three remote controlled cameras in court for the Olympic athletes trial starting next week to capture images that likely will be seen by millions around the world.Chicago, IL (SportsNetwork.com) - The Chicago Bulls withstood a LaMarcus Aldridge onslaught in the first quarter, got on a huge run early in the second and then kept the Portland Trail Blazers at bay the rest of the way. Derrick Rose scored a season-high 31 points to go with five assists and the Bulls defeated the Blazers 115-106 on Friday night. My goals are still the same, stay healthy, keep stringing them out and win games, Rose said. Aldridge netted an NBA season-high 21 first-quarter points to help Portland to the early lead, but the Bulls went on a 16-2 surge in the second and never trailed the rest of the way. Aaron Brooks and Nikola Mirotic deposited 17 and 15 points off the bench, respectively, while Pau Gasol added 13 points, 10 rebounds and four assists for Chicago, which has won three of its last four games. Aldridge finished with 35 points and nine boards and Damian Lillard supplied a season-high 35 points to go with six helpers and five rebounds for the Blazers, who have dropped consecutive contests on the heels of a five-game winning streak. After Portland got within 90-87 early in the fourth, a Brooks floater finished off an ensuing 10-2 flurry to give the Bulls a 100-89 lead annd they were never seriously threatened again.dddddddddddd Brooks posted 14 points in the period. Aldridge began 10-of-11 from the field and his one-footed stepback from the left wing staked Portland to a 28-21 advantage before heading into the second with a 28-24 cushion. Mirotic, who poured in nine points during the burst to start the second, began it with four straight free throws, and consecutive 3-pointers by Brooks and Mirotic gave the Bulls a 40-30 margin. Chicago headed into the locker room with a 59-51 spread. Nicolas Batum jumpstarted a 10-0 Portland swing during the early to middle stages of the third with a jumper and added another one to cap it and pull the Blazers within 67-65. The Bulls took an 82-78 edge into the final frame. Game Notes Dallas Monta Ellis had the season-high total for a first quarter coming into Friday with 17. Clevelands LeBron James had 19 points in the first of his game Friday against New Orleans ... This was Roses first appearance against Portland since suffering his second major knee injury on Nov. 22, 2013 at Portland ... Aldridge had averaged 11 points per game in his last three games against Chicago heading in. ' ' '