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27	December 2019

out there fighting for a tenth-of-a-second

TORONTO - For those who believe the NBAs preseason is too long, the Raptors potentially costly rout of Memphis on Wednesday - exactly one week before the start of the regular season - could serve as exhibit A. Kings Jerseys China . With nothing tangible at stake, the Raptors turned in their most impressive outing of the fall in their seventh and second to last exhibition tilt against their stiffest competition yet, but they lost a couple starters in the process. Point guard Kyle Lowry was the first to exit the game after his left ring finger popped out reaching for a loose ball with 3:47 remaining in the third quarter of Torontos 108-72 victory. Lowry sprinted to the locker room and did not return to the game. Just two and a half minutes later, centre Jonas Valanciunas took an inadvertent elbow from Zach Randolph to the face and needed three stitches to patch up a laceration to his chin. "It wouldnt be preseason if we didnt have any drama right now," Dwane Casey said, half-jokingly after his teams impressive defeat of the Grizzlies. Lowry sported a protective wrap on his non-shooting hand following the game. The severity of his injury was not known at the time. "Hes going to have it examined tomorrow and see what it is," Casey said of Lowrys injured finger. "Well find out tomorrow what it is and go from there." Valanciunas had ice on his stitched up chin post-game. Understandably, he was very sore but Casey indicated he could have returned had this been a regular season game. "Hes got some battle scars now, and I like it," Casey said. "He didnt back down, he was battling. Thats what weve got to do. People have to know that theyre not going to come in and just embarrass us." "Were going to play clean but weve got to hold our ground and thats what I tell our guys all the time. Nobody comes in, pushes you around, takes a cheap shot at you without you responding and weve got to continue to be that way and keep that reputation." Randolph was assessed a flagrant foul on the play, his sixth personal, fouling out in the process. "Its a contact sport, that happens," said Rudy Gay, a former teammate of Randolphs in Memphis. "Obviously (Randolph) showed remorse after he did it. Hes a tough player, hes a gritty player and sometimes that happens. For us to get better, for JV to get better he has to learn how to, not retaliate but then go out there and play with that same kind of grittiness." Although the injury to Valanciunas is not believed to have long-term repercussions, the team is holding their collective breath awaiting the prognoses on Lowry, whom they cant afford to be without. Without a viable back up on the roster, Lowry figures to play major minutes, assuming good health, at the point this season. Neither D.J. Augustin nor Dwight Buycks has stood out or inspired much confidence in the teams depth at the position. Julyan Stone, who has been battling for the teams final roster spot, has been a pleasant surprise but he too left Wednesdays game after just three minutes, taking a knee to his right hip, the same hip he had surgery on last year. Tyler Hansbrough was also wearing a wrap on his hand as a precaution after the game. The Raptors forward banged his right thumb, though the injury is not expected to be serious. A tough test, albeit in the preseason Although the Raptors 6-1 mark in the preseason - matching last years exhibition record - hasnt satisfied Coach Casey, nor should it, he was pleased with the way his team responded to the challenge against an elite Western Conference power. "They did an excellent job, they responded," Casey said of the Raptors, holding Memphis to 35 percent shooting and outrebounding them 54-36. "Again its preseason but we have to set a tone. We only gave up seven offensive rebounds to one of the top offensive rebounding teams and I thought our guys met the challenge defensively." Casey had spoken about giving his starters some playing time in the fourth quarter but given the lopsided score and the third-quarter injury scare he capped them off between 21-28 minutes. However, the first unit did play the bulk of the first three frames and faced legitimate competition as Memphis also played its starters, minus Tayshaun Prince. "Tonight was a great test for us," said DeMar DeRozan, who led the way once again, scoring 21 points including eight (on nine attempts) from the free-throw line. "It definitely was a big game for us and we held our own. That was our main focus going into tonight, trying to hold our ground and thats what we did." For the first time, Casey experimented with different combinations that included one or two of his starters on the floor with three or four reserves. "We didnt have a whole (second) group out there by themselves so that helped," he said, stressing that his rotation will operate this way - although it will be fluid - during the regular season. As a result, there was little-to-no drop off when Toronto went to its bench on Wednesday. Initially with Lowry and Gay also on the floor, both Terrence Ross and Landry Fields got off to quick starts, combining for 14 points on 5-of-5 shooting in the first half. Ross did get an earful from his coach for attempting to bite off more than he could chew later in the game. "Terrence shot the ball decent", Casey said, "but I got upset with him about the running Harlem Globetrotter hook shot. We want to play the game the right way because the basketball gods have a way of coming back and getting you if you mess with the game." Familiar faces Gay chipped in with 15 points, playing 26 minutes against his former team. "Its fun," he said, asked about facing the Grizzlies, a team he was a member of for six-plus seasons before Januarys three-team swap sent him to Toronto. "Its competitive. I think its even more competitive, at least on my end it is. Its good to see familiar faces but then again you want to get a win no matter what it is, preseason or regular season." Austin Daye was also part of that deal, going from Detroit to Memphis before signing with the Raptors during the summer. The forward had his best game in a Raptors jersey, scoring 14 points in less than 17 minutes and connecting on all three of his attempts from long range. Ed Davis, who was sent from Toronto to Memphis, made his second return to the Air Canada Centre and finished one rebound shy of a double-double in just 16 minutes, registering 11 points and nine boards. The former Raptors forward will begin the season playing behind two all-star big men in Randolph and Marc Gasol but is feeling more comfortable with his new team having a full training camp under his belt. "They didnt really get to see my all-around game because we didnt practice that much last year so I feel much better," he said after shoot-around Wednesday morning. Up Next The Raptors conclude the exhibition schedule in Milwaukee against the Bucks on Friday before beginning the regular season at home to the Celtics on Wednesday. Stitched Kings Jerseys . That assertion is getting harder and harder to make, especially given the way 23-year-old Danilo Gallinari has been playing this season. Custom Sacramento Kings Jerseys . -- Sonny Grays fastball wasnt as sharp as it usually is, and the Oakland Athletics young pitcher even had a quirky replay go against him. https://www.cheapkingsbasketball.com/ . It has been eleven years, eight months, and 261 days since I played my last CFL game.BRISTOL, Tenn. -- Danica Patrick wrecked just minutes into what turned into a dicey first practice session Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway. In all, four drivers had to go to backup cars before the halfway mark of the 90-minute session, including 15-time Bristol winner Kyle Busch. Denny Hamlin, who watched the first 15 minutes of practice from pit road, attributed the wrecks to drivers adapting to NASCARs new aerodynamic rules and Goodyears tire compound producing faster speeds. "I really dont think its treacherous," Hamlin told Fox Sports 1. "Its just the speeds are so much higher than weve seen. It takes a little getting used to. We are all out there fighting for a tenth-of-a-second, a hundredth-of-a-second at Bristol. I think it comes more from us pushing the edge than it is treacherous." Patrick was the first to wreck, losing control roughly thrree minutes into the session. Kings Jerseys 2021. She slammed into Parker Kligermans car, and his Swan Racing team appeared to be trying to fix his Toyota as Stewart-Haas Racing immediately pulled out the backup Chevrolet for Patrick. Justin Allgaier then hit the wall, then Busch. Moments later, Greg Biffle crashed. All three went to backup cars. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. later scraped the wall, but didnt appear to do much damage. Ryan Newman, who missed the first 15 minutes of practice because of a penalty last week at Las Vegas, found the beginning of practice entertaining. "We sat there and watched a few guys crash," he said. "It seems like the cars are really, really sensitive to some changes just because the cars are so stiff now because of the rigidity of how were running them. Once you lose it, you really lose it, which is what weve seen." ' ' '