Raptors 107, Heat 96 (Beyond the Box Score)

TORONTO - Some teams just seem to have their way against the Heat.

The Raptors, for now, are chief among them. Toronto used an 18-3 run that bridged the third and fourth quarters to turn a closely contested game into another comfortable double-digit victory against the Heat, this time a 107-96 triumph Sunday at Air Canada Centre.

The Heat came north of the border to see its shooting percentage sink the farthest south it has all season. Miami made a season-low 40.2 percent of its shots. That included 18 misses on a season-high 31 attempts for Dwyane Wade, 10 misses on 14 attempts from Michael Beasley and 8 misses on 13 attempts from Daequan Cook.

But the Heat wasn't just off offensively. It was also manhandled defensively, specifically on the boards, where the Raptors turned to 6-10 Chris Bosh and 6-11 Jermaine O'Neal to inflict damage. Bosh and O'Neal combined for 38 points and 25 rebounds against the Heat.

We move beyond the box score.

Player of the Game: Udonis Haslem - It's matchups like this when you have to feel for Haslem. At 6-8, Haslem had to deal with both his man, Jermaine O'Neal, as well as cover from the mistakes of others, namely whoever was responsible at the time for Chris Bosh. These are times when Mark Blount has to step up and be 7 feet. These are times when you needed Jamaal Magloire to be healthy. Still, Haslem came away with 10 points, 10 boards, a steal and a block in 38 hard-fought minutes. Fortunately, team president Pat Riley was on hand to see just where this team needs upgrades on the roster.

Surprise, Surprise: Chris Quinn - Quinny continued his solid shooting, connecting on 2 of 4 attempts from 3-point range. He entered the game ranked among the top five three-point shooters in the league. He remains a steady bail-out option when Dwyane gets in trouble. But this was a night - or day - when Wade elected to try to shoot himself out of jams. Quinn is shooting .536 percent from deep.

Tough Night: Miami's '08 Draft Class - Rookie forward Michael Beasley never found his shot and struggled to defend every man he guarded. Despite its best efforts, the Heat simply can't hide Beasley on the defensive end. The Raptors had seven players score in double figures, including four frontcourt players. Beasley countered with 13 points on 4 of 14 shooting, with four turnovers. He wasn't on the floor to finish the game because of defensive concerns. Meanwhile, rookie point guard Mario Chalmers was expected to have a rough night against Jose Calderon. But a hamstring injury kept Calderon out. Instead, Chalmers was eaten up by Will Solomon, who went off for 15 points and 11 assists.

Lit 'em Up: Chris Bosh - Showed just why he'll be the top realistic target among teams saving up green for the blockbuster summer of 2010. Bosh had 27 points, 7 rebounds and 2 blocks in 42 minutes. He had 16 points in the second half and was a step quicker, an arm's-length longer and far more intense in the lane than anyone the Heat could counter with. Bosh's range makes him nearly impossible to cover.

Stat of the Night: 52-35. Toronto, one of the league's worst rebounding teams, went for a season high and outrebounded the Heat by 17. That led to 38 points in the paint and 15 second-chance points.

That Says it All: "We were down and they absolutely pounded us on the glass, which I was very surprised about. I thought we were going to be able to rebound and get out and play our game - it was their size versus our speed and they won out on that." - Heat coach Erik Spoelstra on matchup issues.

Next Up: Heat at Washington, 7 p.m. Tuesday 

Comments

[Dresta]

I fail to understand how Chalmers was eaten alive by Solomon but Quinn was great, when they both guarded him? Not to mention he was more effective when Quinn was on the floor. They also both shot the same % yet Quinn was great and Chalmers struggled, strange analysis to say the least.

[Mr DingLIngDik LOL]

So u come to this blog to attack the writter??? lol man STFU and grow two big ones lol Chalmers is in a huge slump he cant buy a long range shot! Just trade Marion and get us a big man! End of story!! Blount banks marion diawora and anthony!! trade those Fukers ASAP!! im sure we can get a Perkins type player to clog the lane and snatch rebounds

[Bogle]

The heat already have a big man that can block shots and grab rebounds. Joel Anthony should be getting 30 minutes per game. If he did, he would be pulling down 11 rebounds and blocking 2 shots per game. Haslem needs to spend a lot more time at power forward because he is not a good Center. Beasely should also spend some more time at small forward. He does not play well against taller opponents, and he is not a good enough rebounder to be starting at the 4 spot.

[Patricio]

Joel Anthony can't hold on to a rebound!!! Every time he gets a rebound it's as if he has butter on his fingers and he can't hold on to the ball. Every damn time it happens!!! He has no offense what so ever. He's a worst version of Ben Wallace. If we have him out on the floor it's going to get even harder for Wade to penetrate when you know that Anthony's defender is going to leave him to help on Wade. With Haslem out there they have to at least respect his jump shot. Anthony has to be used as he is being used now: at short periods of time (unless injury occurs which is the case) such as when we are up by 10 or so. He does however bring something that no other big on our team brings and that is contesting shots and block shots. So I like the way Spo's is handling his minutes. We are on the right track this season. We can't just jump to conclusions and start trading away players because were not winning now! We have to calculate our steps and make good decisions. Wade is at stake here. We need to add a couple more solid backups and one more superstar in free agency (2009 2010) and we'll be back as championship contenders. I believe 2010 is the year we will be back as championship contenders. We are going to re sign Wade to a fat deal and then sign either Chris Bosh or Amare Stoudemire. You'll see, 2010 Heat back at the top of the NBA. Can't wait but we must, stop jumping to conclusions and be patient it takes time to rebuild and you better believe Riles is going to get the job done!!! LETS GO HEAT!!!

[Orlando]

What do you guys think about this trade... Shawn Marion(18 mil), Mark Blount(7 mil), and Marcus Banks(4 mil), for Stephon Marbury(20 mil) and Eddy Curry(9 mil)? I think it will help us now AND give us cap relief to add some more pieces in the next 2 years. Banks and blount are riding the pine right now and curry would step in immediately at center moving haslem to power foward where he should be. beasley would still be a 3/4 depending on the matchup while dorell wright and james jones(when healthy) could fill marion's shoes. Marbury would give the heat a player who can put points on the board and also make it easy for everyone else on the court as well as wade since he can handle the rock. Next year his $20 million salary is off the books and chalmers will be entering his second year hopefully ready to take the next step. It seems to me that the Knicks would do this in a heartbeat since both players are not touching the court and marion would help them improve on their fast start. Any thoughts?