Raptors at Cavaliers
The Toronto Raptors will hope to avoid a letdown when they follow up a dramatic home win against the defending champs with a visit to the sinking Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday. The Raptors have won a season-high seven in a row, including Thursday's 131-128 overtime victory over the Golden State Warriors.
Kawhi Leonoard scored a season-high 37 points and two others had at least 20 as Toronto boosted its NBA-best record to 19-4. "We were able to make shots, we were able to get some stops in overtime," Leonard told reporters after the win. "It's a building block for us, and I'm happy we got the win." The Cavaliers have dropped three in a row, including Friday's 128-95 loss at Boston. Rookie Collin Sexton made 6-of-18 shots from the floor in the defeat but he still managed to hit the 15-point mark for the ninth time in his last 11 games.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, TSN (Toronto), FS Ohio (Cleveland)
ABOUT THE RAPTORS (19-4): Paskal Siakam emerged as a significant scoring threat in November, averaging 16.9 points on 65.8 percent shooting during the month. "His confidence is very high," coach Nick Nurse told the media of Siakam. "It just keeps inching along." Kyle Lowry shook off a rough shooting night (4-for-14) to produce 12 assists against the Warriors and he continues to lead the league in that category with 10.3 per game.
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (4-17): Friday saw the team debut of guard Alec Burks, who was acquired in Wednesday's deal that sent veteran Kyle Korver to Utah, and he finished with 15 points, six assists and four rebounds off the bench. Cleveland is still operating without Sam Dekker (ankle) George Hill (shoulder) and Davis Nwaba (knee). Guard Jordan Clarkson is averaging 20.5 points over his last two games and has a total of one turnover in 54 minutes during that stretch.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Lowry had 27 points in a 116-104 victory over Cleveland at home earlier this season.
2. Cavaliers C Tristan Thompson recorded his ninth double-double in a span of 12 games with 13 points and 12 rebounds at Boston.
3. Toronto is averaging 120.3 points during its seven-game winning streak.