Dein erstes Forum » w no-collision rule played a huge pa

SACRAMENTO - The Raptors nearly got away with what should have been one of their most lopsided defeats of the season. Down by 22 early in the fourth quarter, the Raptors - on the heels of yet another fierce comeback - had cut their deficit to six as Kyle Lowry launched what could have been a game-changing three pointer. Kings rookie Ben McLemore closed out hard and the two collided just before Lowrys shot dropped and the whistle blew. Had the bucket counted and, assuming Lowry then connects on the subsequent free throw, the Raptors would have been down by two with 25 seconds remaining. Instead, official Eric Lewis called the foul on the shooter. Lowry had kicked out his leg on the jumper, he explained. The call was bold, to put it mildly, and in disbelief, Lowrys reaction earned him his second technical foul of the game. He was done for the night, heading straight to the locker room, and for all intents and purposes so, too, were the Raptors. On the night, the Raptors were assigned three techs. They finished the game with more personal fouls (35) than Kings field goals (32). Lowry, like the rest of his teammates, didnt say much following Wednesdays 109-101 loss in Sacramento. What he did say spoke volumes. "I cant say what I really want to say," Lowry commented, biting his tongue. "Its as simple as that." Theyve all lived through this narrative before, most recently in Portland this past weekend. Questionable officiating aside - theyve seen their fair share of that, too - slow starts followed by one last-ditch effort to save the day have become the norm. Its a bad habit that the likes of Indiana and Miami can get away with because theyre Indiana and Miami. When the Raptors play with fire, more often than not, theyll get burned. Dwane Casey, moments after lacing into his players in the locker room, could have gone after the officials but wisely chose to save his money and direct his angst at the team. Correct what you can control was the mindset, and the Raptors have displayed a few glaring faults worth correcting. "We havent done anything, Ive been repeating this, we havent done anything in this league yet to come out and play in second gear until we try to turn it on," said the Raptors coach, his team giving up 92 points and trailing by 20 after three quarters Wednesday. "Were not that good and, until we have that disposition from start to finish, were going to be disappointed a lot. Ive said that warning, Ive given that warning and like I just told them, they have to decide how they want to live." The emotions of the evening got the better of them. On a night in which seven players - including the Kings Rudy Gay - faced their former team for the first time since Decembers trade, Sacramento came out with the focus that escaped the Raptors. "Its a business" is a phrase that was uttered over and over on both sides leading up to the much-anticipated reunion between Gay and the Raptors, but only one team followed through on it. "Were out hugging, giving [high] fives and all that," said a disappointed Casey. "This is a business and I didnt think our disposition from start to finish was in the fight mode, the hungry-team mode." The Raptors had rallied around Gay as he made his first trip back to Memphis earlier in the season and the Kings did the same Wednesday. The former Raptors forward and leading scorer had a double-double of 24 points and 10 rebounds, but he didnt do it alone because he didnt have to. DeMarcus Cousins scored 25 and Isaiah Thomas added 23. Combined, the three Kings accounted for 41 of the Kings 51 free throw attempts. Toronto made just 24 trips to the line. "Its about putting your body on someone," Casey said. "The fundamental box-out, going to get it, getting to rebounds, all the little things that you have to do. And then you put them on the line 51 times because either youre late or out of position." Just like it did in Portland on Saturday, Torontos defence took the first half off. The Kings - a 16-win team going into the evening - scored 30 points in the first quarter and 37 in the second. By halftime, four of their five starters were in double figures. The Raptors are a resilient bunch, sure. Comeback specialist Steve Novak checked in and promptly knocked down three triples. They made a game of it, as theyve been known to do, but when you rely on the miraculous, you leave yourself vulnerable to the unpredictable nature of crunch time in the NBA. Things happen. In Portland, it was a relatively unforced turnover on the games final possession. In Sacramento, it was a bad call. The visitors locker room in Sleep Train Arena - easily the coziest in the league - was filled with frustrated players, packed together like sardines. They had every reason to be frustrated, but as Casey stressed to them, they need to look inward. "We got guys who are going to fight to the end, but we cant let ourselves get down by 20 and think we are going to come back every time," said John Salmons, one of four Raptors who came over in the trade from Sacramento. "Its not going to happen every time." "Like I told the guys in the locker room, it was probably the worst game weve played since I got here," said Chuck Hayes, another former Kings player. "This ones probably going to [cause us to] lose a couple hours of sleep but weve got to get over it." Eric Fisher Jersey . Behind the talents of rookie Johnny Gaudreau, the Flames will look to keep pace Thursday night when they face the Minnesota Wild in the second of a six-game homestand. Austin Reiter Jersey . That Ginette Reno can sing. http://www.cheapchiefsjerseysauthentic.c...nchester-jersey. Petersburg of the KHL. Belov was a free agent last summer when he signed a one-year contract with the Oilers. In 57 games this season he had one goal and six assists with 34 penalty minutes in Edmonton. Carlos Hyde Jersey . -- The Washington Redskins coaching staff distanced itself from other coaches Thursday by siding with ownership -- and not the players -- in the NFLs labour dispute. Anthony Hitchens Jersey . The former Edmonton Oilers defenceman was with the St. Louis Blues in training camp on a professional tryout. Whitney, 30, had four goals and 13 points in 34 games with the Oilers last season.ANAHEIM, Calif. - Mike Trout helped secure home field advantage for the American League in the World Series with his MVP performance in the All-Star Game. Now all the Angels have to do is get to the Fall Classic. Efren Navarro singled home a run with two outs in the 16th inning on Friday night, and the Los Angeles Angels came out of the All-Star break with a 3-2 victory over the Seattle Mariners — and a new closer. After the 10th inning, the Angels announced they had acquired two-time All-Star Huston Street from the San Diego Padres in a multiplayer deal that included five minor leaguers. The Angels also get pitcher Trevor Gott, and the Padres get pitchers R.J. Alvarez and Elliot Morris, along with infielders Taylor Lindsey and Jose Rondon. "Were it not for the fact that we had the ability to control Huston for a year and two months, it would have been far more difficult to justify giving up the type of package that we gave up to get him," Angels general manager Jerry Dipoto said. "We had to get a guy like Trevor Gott included in the deal to replace some of that lost value. "Hustons 30 years old, and arguably having his best season as a major leaguer," Dipoto added. "Hes been one of the more consistent closers in baseball over time and one of the highest percentage conversion guys in the league for a number of years. I feel really strong about his character and what he brings to the clubhouse. It really deepens the back end of our bullpen and it gives us the opportunity to make games shorter." One of the more enthusiastic Angels following the trade was Jered Weaver, who was charged with two runs and six hits in six-plus innings and struck out eight. "Obviously, its tremendous any time you can add a guy like that to your bullpen. Well take that any day of the week," Weaver said. Dominic Leone (2-2) gave up a one-out double to Trout in the 16th and intentionally walked Josh Hamilton with two out after a comebacker by Albert Pujols. Navarro batted for John McDonald and stroked the first pitch up the middle to bring home Trout. Hector Santiago (2-7), the ninth AAngels pitcher, allowed one hit over 2 1-3 innings to get the victory.dddddddddddd Mariners righty Tom Wilhelmsen allowed one hit over four innings, struck out four and threw 51 pitches in the longest of his 192 big league appearances. "It was a tough one. We all are doing everything we can to win," Wilhelmsen said. "Everybody is. I told him (manager Lloyd McClendon) had another inning in me. I cant remember the last time I pitched four innings. Its been a long time." The Angels have won six straight, and are a major league-best 27-9 since June 6. Robinson Cano, who was 4 for 6 with a walk, greeted Jason Grilli with a leadoff drive to right-centre in the 10th and got to second with a pop-up slide. But shortstop McDonald, who had entered the game as a pinch-runner for the injured Erick Aybar, kept his glove on Cano after getting Trouts relay from centre field. Scioscia requested a video review, and Cano was ruled out. Seattle righty Hisashi Iwakuma allowed two runs and six hits over seven innings and was lifted after just 77 pitches. The new no-collision rule played a huge part in the Angels scoring the games first run, after Hendrick led off their two-run fifth with a single and came all the way around on Freeses double to the wall in right-centre. Second baseman Cano got the relay from right fielder Chavez and got the ball to the plate in plenty of time to get Kendrick, who jarred the ball loose from Mike Zuninos glove on an attempted sweep tag. Freese continued to third on Zuninos error and scored on Hank Congers single through a drawn-in infield. NOTES: The worst-line-of-the-night award went to Mariners 3B Kyle Seager, who was 0 for 7 with three strikeouts. ... The Angels agreed to terms with LHP Sean Newcomb, their No.1 dr