DeRozan leads Raptors to sixth straight win
TORONTO -- DeMar DeRozan scored 36 points to lead the Raptors to a 131-112 victory over the Orlando Magic on Monday night that extended Toronto's winning streak to six games.
Cory Joseph added a double-double for the Raptors (45-29) with 15 points and a career-best 13 assists.
The teams finished their season series at 2-2.
The Raptors led by as many as 19 points in the third quarter and took a 10-point lead into the fourth that soon was stretched to 15.
Norman Powell added 16 points off the bench, Serge Ibaka also had 16 points and nabbed seven rebounds, and Jonas Valanciunas contributed 17 points with nine rebounds. Jakob Poeltl chipped in with 12 points off the bench.
Elfrid Payton led the Magic (27-47) with 22 points and nine assists. Evan Fournier added 20 points, former Raptor Terrence Ross scored 17 and Aaron Gordon 16. Nikola Vucevic had 12 points and grabbed 15 rebounds for Orlando.
The Raptors trailed by as many as seven points before finishing the first quarter with a 35-34 lead. DeRozan scored 18 points in the first quarter and Gordon led Orlando with 10.
The Raptors used an 11-0 run during the second quarter to take a 51-42 lead with 6:33 to play in the half. They increased their lead to 18 points on an 18-foot pull-up jumper by Joseph with 3:50 left. .
The Raptors led 73-57 at the intermission.
They increased the lead to 19 on a running layup by DeRozan with 8:16 to play in the third quarter.
Orlando went on an 8-0 run to cut the lead to eight on a dunk by Vucevic with 3:35 to go in the third.
After the Magic cut the lead to five with 12.4 seconds left, the Raptors finished the third quarter with five straight points including a 3-point buzzer-beater by Delon Wright after a turnover to make the score 99-89.
The Raptors scored the first five points of the fourth quarter.
Vucevic made two free throws to trim the lead to 12 with 4:58 to play. But Joseph's 3-pointer with 3:45 left had the lead back to 15,
NOTES: Raptors F DeMarre Carroll (sore lower back) did not play for the second straight game Monday. F P.J. Tucker took his starting spot at small forward. ... Magic G/F Terrence Ross met with some former teammates before the game as he played against the Raptors for the first time since being traded to Orlando with a first-round draft pick for F Serge Ibaka on Feb. 14. ... The Raptors beat the Magic in Orlando Dec. 18 and the Magic have won the past two games between the teams, Jan. 29 and Feb. 3. ... The Raptors play the second game of four in a row at home Wednesday against the Charlotte Hornets. ... The Magic return to Amway Center Wednesday to play the Oklahoma City Thunder.