The True Post (Web News) The Toronto Raptors defeated the Indiana Pacers 95-97 in a thrilling contest in the NBA’s in-season tournament.
The game was decided in the final minutes when Brandon Ingram hit a 15-foot jump shot with just 0.6 seconds left to give the team the win. Toronto gained the top-two seed and home court advantage. With this win, the Raptors not only won their ninth consecutive victory but also completed the group stage of this season’s tournament with an undefeated record of 4-0. At the same time, the Milwaukee Bucks’ defeat by the Miami Heat gave Toronto the **top-two seed** and home court advantage in the quarterfinals.
Ingram and Barnes’ outstanding performance
Brandon Ingram led the team with 26 points and 8 rebounds, while Scotty Barnes scored a double-double with 24 points and 10 rebounds. Emmanuel Quickley also played an important role with 15 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds. Toronto is currently suffering from injuries, but despite this, the team’s performance was strong.
Indiana’s struggle and the performance of the Canadian backcourt
The Indiana Pacers took the lead on several occasions during the match, but the team could not maintain control in the closing moments. TJ McConnell came off the bench and scored 16 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists. Benedict Matheran scored 15 and Andrew Nemhardt scored 9 points. Jarris Walker scored 13 points and could not complete a double-double due to the lack of only one rebound.
Raptors suffer from injuries
Forward Grady Dick was injured in the first quarter of the match and was injured after a hard fall and could not return. Earlier, the team announced that RJ Barrett would be out for at least a week with a knee injury.
At the end of the second quarter, the Raptors scored a spectacular 11-0 run to take a 49-50 halftime lead. Ingram’s three-pointer in the third quarter extended the streak to **13-1. Matheran’s 26-foot three-point shot in the final quarter gave the Pacers the lead again, but Ingram’s last-second shot decided the game. The Raptors performed very poorly from the three-point line in this match, making only 5-26 (19.2%) three-pointers, which is far below their season average of 37.8%. Despite this, the team maintained the lead in rebounding and points in the paint.
