Raptors rout Blazers

02.12.2006

Toronto, ON (Basketball News) - Morris Peterson poured in 22 points, grabbed four rebounds and dished out four assists as the Toronto Raptors stormed past the Portland Trail Blazers, 114-81, at Air Canada Centre.

Mike James added 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the floor, as the Raptors won for the second game in a row. Chris Bosh scored 14 points and pulled down nine rebounds for Toronto, which shot an impressive 58.5 percent from the field in the game.

Charlie Villanueva netted 16 points and had nine rebounds in the win.

Charles Smith came off the bench to lead Portland with 11 points, as the Trail Blazers lost for the fourth straight game and fifth time in their last six overall.

Juan Dixon and Zach Randolph each scored 10 points in the loss.

Toronto led the entire way and was in front by as many as 35 points in the contest.

"I thought it was important to get off to a good start," said Peterson. "That is one thing the coach (Sam Mitchell) talked about coming into this game. It was a game we were supposed to win and we took care of business."

Led by a blistering field goal percentage of 70 percent, the Raptors took a 31-18 lead after the opening quarter. James netted 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field.

Toronto opened the second quarter with a 15-5 surge to take a 46-23 lead. Matt Bonner donated five points during the stretch, including a three-pointer.

The Raptors cruised into halftime with a 52-38 advantage. Bosh and James each had 12 points in the opening half.

"They play hard and they’re a team," said Randolph. "They play together and they play hard."

Toronto opened the third quarter with a 13-4 run that James capped with a running jumper to push the lead to 65-42. The Raptors went on to outscore the Trail Blazers 33-21 in the third to take a comfortable 85-59 lead into the final quarter.

Portland never threatened the rest of the way as Toronto outscored the Trail Blazers 29-22 in the final quarter.

Game Notes

The Raptors improved to 10-16 at home this season...Bosh and Villanueva each had two blocks...Peterson shot 4-of-8 from beyond the arc. As a team, Toronto shot 10-of-22 from the three-point line...Portland dropped to 5-19 away from home this season...Travis Outlaw had 10 points for the Trail Blazers.

POR TOR

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