Raptors latest skid hits five

OAKLAND, Calif.—Stephen Curry dribbled down court and saw Andrew Bogut sprinting to his left.
He tossed a lob well above the rim, and Bogut leaped up high for a powerful two-handed dunk that had the rest of the Golden State Warriors running off the bench to offer high-fives and hugs in celebration.

The alley-oop in the second quarter of Golden State’s 125-118 victory over the Toronto Raptors last night either will be a turning point or just another brief burst of brilliance in an injury-saddled season for the Australian centre.
At the very least, it gave the home fans reason to believe Bogut could be a factor in the playoff push.
“There are going to be plays like that where, individually for him, his mind is going to be, ‘I’m close to being back,’” said Warriors’ coach Mark Jackson.
“For our guys, it was a ‘wow’ moment,” he noted. “We know who he is. We know what he’s capable of doing.
“For him to make a play like that, it was refreshing.”
David Lee had 29 points and 11 rebounds to back Bogut’s eye-opening return and snap Golden State’s four-game losing streak.
Curry added 26 points and tied a season high with 12 assists while Klay Thompson scored 10 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter to help the Warriors pull away with a 9-0 run.
Andrea Bargnani scored 26 points and tied a career high with five three-pointers, with Amir Johnson adding 23 points and 15 rebounds in Toronto’s fifth-straight loss.
Kyle Lowry finished with 11 points, 11 rebounds, and nine assists while Rudy Gay scored 26 points after missing the Raptors’ loss at Milwaukee on Saturday night with back spasms.
Golden State’s streaky shooting still proved to be too much. The Warriors outshot the Raptors 57 to 44 percent and made 23-of-28 free throws, closing out the game in the final minute from the line.
“The offence wasn’t the problem,” Bargnani said. “We had what we wanted.
“On defence, we have to do a better job, especially against these kinds of teams,” he stressed.
“We tried to do what we can, but it wasn’t good enough.”
Elsewhere in the NBA, Miami beat Minnesota 97-81, New York downed Cleveland 102-97, Orlando shaded New Orleans 105-102, Milwaukee topped Utah 109-108 (OT), Denver upended Atlanta 104-88, and Portland dumped Charlotte 122-105.