Okkultismus » Montreal coach Michel Therrien said.

TORONTO - The Raptors have won seven of eight games, with just four remaining on the docket before the playoffs begin, but their head coach has been reluctant to celebrate his teams bittersweet late-season success. Thanks in large part to a soft schedule and their improved efficiency on offence, they are finding ways to pull out games that they have probably deserved to lose. In that way, progress has been made, as Raptor teams of the past would universally find creative and increasingly frustrating ways to squander winnable games. The red flag is routed in their recent slippage on defence, Dwane Caseys bread and butter. With the postseason around the corner, Casey knows that mental and physical toughness is about to become more important than ever. He cant help but be concerned with what hes seen. "If we havent taught defence by now we shouldnt be coaching," he said following a Thursday afternoon practice session. "Its a mindset right now, its a focus. Its this time of year throughout the league, its an epidemic." Over the last two games, Toronto has allowed Milwaukee and Philadelphia - the NBAs two worst clubs - to score 212 points combined, shooting exactly 50 per cent from the field, with each team exceeding 60 points in the painted area. On the season, the Raptors are surrendering 102.0 points per 100 possessions, the eighth-best mark in the association. Since Mar. 25 - a span in which theyve played nine games, six against sub-.500 competition - that number has ballooned to 107.2, ranking 17th, below league average. Offensively, theyve picked up the slack. Over that same stretch of nine games, the Raptors have scored 4.1 points more per 100 possessions than their regular season mark. Simply put, their shots are falling. Theyve connected on 44 per cent of their three-point attempts in the last four contests. That said, theyve made it this far with their commitment to defence. Thats what Casey knows, thats what he preaches and for whatever reason, his team has struggled to regain their identity at the most inconvenient time of the year. "Weve just got to get back on track," DeMar DeRozan said, following Torontos 125-114 win over the lowly 76ers on Wednesday. "Weve got to get out of whatever were not doing on the defensive end before the playoffs start. Just clean that up and use the next four games for that. Understand what were not doing and get back to the basics of what got us to this point." "We saw it on film, we showed the film, we talked about it, went through it this morning," Casey added the next day. "Its something thats going to have to be internal. Guys have to decide individually, Imma guard my yard and Im not going to let a guy blow by me." For the most part thats been the most glaring issue, containing speed and quickness on the perimeter, something the Raptors have been burned by consistently throughout the latter part of the season. Its easy to look at the 126 points Toronto has given up in the paint over the past two games and assign blame to the teams interior players but most of those buckets have come as a result of blow-bys and mental lapses on the perimeter. "Its a lot of things that factor into it and weve got to understand and learn that weve got to bring the same effort and focus every night," Casey said. "Its not something you teach. I mean, were not going to change defensive fundamentals. You cant drill it, its too physical. So its a mindset of understanding where we are in the season and understanding what were playing for." "Its not a lack of energy. Guys are playing hard, were just not focused on what we need to do and what were trying to do scheme-wise and playing smart." Surely some of the drop off can be attributed to injuries and having to shift rotations. Kyle Lowry returned to the court Wednesday after a three-game absence with a knee injury while Amir Johnson, the teams most valuable help defender, has missed most of the last four contests nursing his sore ankle. Johnson participated in a light practice Thursday and is nearing a return to game action, though the coaching staff will be cautious with his playing time when he is able to suit up, as early as Friday at home to the Knicks. "Its a day-to-day thing," Casey said of Johnsons status. "He probably could have went [Wednesday] night if it was totally needed but we need to get him healthy." With or without Johnson, the Raptors will be pursuing history when they host New York Friday evening. With a win, or Nets loss - theyre at home to Atlanta - Toronto would clinch its second division title in franchise history, while also matching a team record for most victories in a season with their 47th. Theyll also have an opportunity to go 15 games above the .500 mark for the first time in their 19-year existence. "That would definitely be an accomplishment," Johnson admitted, "but our main focus is just going game-by-game until we get to the top and then we can celebrate all our accomplishments." Meanwhile, the Knicks are a desperate team, sitting two games behind the Hawks for the eighth and final spot in the Eastern Conference playoff race. Well rested after four days off, they could present a challenge for Toronto and its ailing defence. "We expect nothing but theyre best shot," Casey said. "Theyre going to come out guns blazing, playing hard, as we should after our defensive performance [Wednesday] night. So I expect both teams to come out, I think itll be a hard fought game but weve got to play hard and smart." DeRozan and Lowry are also chasing history as their career seasons come to a close. Lowry needs just one three-pointer to tie Morris Petersons single season franchise record, previously set in the 2005-06 campaign, while DeRozan is 10 made free throws away from matching Chris Boshs mark of 504 from 2008-09. Custom Houston Astros Nike Jerseys . -- Hee Young Park topped the leaderboard at 8 under Friday in the suspended second round of the Kingsmill Championship. Custom Los Angeles Angels Nike Jerseys . "There are a lot of things that are going very well in this organization. Im not coming in here to rip things apart," Nicholson told reporters Friday. "I know what Hockey Canada was when I started, and I know where this (Oilers) organization is today. https://www.custombaseballnikejerseys.com/?tag=custom-st-louis-cardinals-nike-jerseys . -- Zach Johnson asked his short-iron approach on the par-4 18th to "Do something right, baby. Custom Boston Red Sox Nike Jerseys . The struggling New Orleans Pelicans were simply overmatched. Crawford hit seven 3s on his way to 24 points, and the Clippers beat the Pelicans 123-110 on Monday night. "We understand what we do well. If we all do what we do well, well make our team stronger," Crawford said. Custom Minnesota Twins Nike Jerseys . They probably ruined Tim Duncans hopes of a career change, though. Duncan wants to be a point guard, coach Gregg Popovich revealed Saturday, a wish that wont be granted.RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Montreal Canadiens needed a little time to get up to speed in their final game before the Olympic break. When they did, they left behind the Carolina Hurricanes. David Desharnais scored twice and the Canadiens rallied for a 4-1 victory Saturday night. "We had a little slump a couple of weeks ago and we wanted to get out of it," Desharnais said. "We did and we want to stay up in the standings and with these three wins, we did. That was our goal." Ryan White and Brian Gionta also scored and Carey Price made 31 saves to help the Canadiens win their third in a row. "It was nice to finish before the break with another win," said Price, set to play for Canada in the Olympics. "We talked about staying focused and earning that one and it worked out for us. Confidence in hockey is a big thing and to finish strong like this is good," Montreal left wing Max Pacioretty, a member of the U.S. team, suffered a first-period injury after being checked into the goal by Carolinas Brett Bellemore. He left with 7:30 left in the first period and did not return. After the game, Pacioretty said it was all precautionary for his to sit out the rest of the game. "I went in pretty hard and I got the wind knocked out of me," Pacioretty said. "I think the team wanted to play it safe and I think it was a good decision." After a scoreless first period, Carolina got on the scoreboard first in the second period. Drayson Bowman sccored his fourth goal of the season with a rising shot from the top of the right circle at 5:42.dddddddddddd Bowman took advantage of Tuomo Ruutus screen that kept Price from making a play on the puck. But the rest of the game belonged to the Canadiens. "We responded the right way," Montreal coach Michel Therrien said. "Even though they scored the first goal, we started playing well." Desharnais tied it with 2:08 left in the second, converting a 3-on-2 rush. It took only 1:25 for Montreal to take the lead as White scored on a rebound at the top of the crease with 42.7 seconds left in the period. Desharnais gave Montreal some breathing room early in the third period with his 11th goal of the season. It marked his first multi-goal game of the season. Gionta finished the scoring for Montreal with an empty-netter with 2:37 to go. Carolina defenceman Justin Faulk said the Hurricanes didnt play with energy. "We didnt have the drive and the effort we needed," said Faulk, who also is on the U.S. Olympic team. "In a game like this, especially before the break, we needed to leave it all out there. It didnt go our way." Neither team took advantage of their power-play opportunities. Montreal was 0 for 1 with the man-advantage, and Carolina failed on two power plays. NOTES: Carolina C Riley Nash extended his point streak to a career-best three games. ... Hurricanes D Justin Faulk matched his season-best points total with 22, picking up an assist. ' ' '