
On the heels of a horrible season and out of the playoffs, all the Toronto Raptors could hope for yesterday was to win their final game at the Air Canada Centre and go out on a high note.
Mission accomplished. Chris Bosh scored 22 points to lead the Raptors to a 111-104 win over the Philadelphia 76ers in their home finale, snapping a four-game losing streak. Anthony Parker added 18 points, while Andrea Bargnani finished with 17 points. Shawn Marion had 14 points, Jose Calderon finished with 11 points and 11 assists, and Patrick O'Bryant had 10 points for the Raptors (31-49), who still have two road games left in the regular-season.
Louis Williams topped the Sixers (40-40) with 23 points, while Andre Iguodala added 21 and Samuel Dalembert of Montreal had 18 points and 12 rebounds, as Philadelphia dropped its fifth straight game -- a season high.
In a game between a Raptors team with nothing to lose and a Sixers squad with plenty on the line -- battling to avoid being the eighth seed heading into the playoffs -- neither team took control until the fourth quarter, the lead changing hands 21 times in the first three quarters.
The Raptors held an 81-80 advantage going into the fourth, and opened the final frame with an 8-0 run. They stretched their lead to 13 points on a three-pointer by newcomer Quincy Douby with 5:47 to go that brought the Air Canada Centre crowd of 18,018 to its feet. Iguodala responded with a pair of threes and a layup that pulled the Sixers within four points with 1:56 to go, but free throws by Calderon and Bosh sealed the victory for Toronto.
The season's been a trying one for coach Jay Triano and the Raptors since Triano replaced Sam Mitchell on Dec. 3.
There are numerous factors that contributed to their decline -- an unfavourable schedule, Jose Calderon's hamstring injury that plagued him for much of the season, Bosh's early-winter slump and the acquisition of Jermaine O'Neal that never panned out. The Raptors eventually swapped O'Neal for Marion at the trade deadline.
But through a difficult season, the 50-year-old Triano said in an interview he's become a better coach.
"I expected we would be better, just like everybody else, just like the fans that watch, the players that play and the media that cover it,'' Triano said.
Toronto's performance in the team's home finale was key.
"It doesn't matter who we're playing or how many they've lost in a row, this is our last home game and there's a sense of pride that we have," Triano said.