TORONTO - In a play that sort of typified the evening and maybe even their season, Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry led a second-quarter fast break by delivering a one-handed bounce pass to Greivis Vasquez, who lateraled to the trailing Amir Johnson. [url=http://www.outletairmaxpascher.fr/fausse-air-ma

TORONTO - In a play that sort of typified the evening and maybe even their season, Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry led a second-quarter fast break by delivering a one-handed bounce pass to Greivis Vasquez, who lateraled to the trailing Amir Johnson. Nike Air Max 97 Ultra Pas Cher Vente . Johnson, the beneficiary of a couple perfectly placed passes, capped off the sequence with a tomahawk slam that put Toronto on top by 20 points. Fouled on the landing, Johnsons momentum carried him into the first row, where he proudly pointed to the team name on his jersey and slapped hands with fans seated on the baseline. It was that kind of night. The proceedings began with the unveiling of a second Atlantic Division Championship banner and concluded with a well-deserved standing ovation just over two hours later. The Raptors - trotting off the court following a 110-100, wire-to-wire win over the Bucks - had set a new franchise record with their 48th victory of the season, while also going 15 games above the .500 mark for the first time in team history. "Its definitely great because we fed off our fans," said DeMar DeRozan, who stood centre court and counted down from three, as the banner was uncovered from the rafters atop Air Canada Centre, hanging adjacent to the one they had earned in 2006-07. The final home game of the season - Fanapolooza, as its been dubbed - had been a somber event for five years running. It was an opportunity for the Raptors loyal, albeit frustrated supporters to come bid farewell to a team that had let them down, a chance to vent their disappointment but mostly to guzzle up free t-shirts, pizza and whatever swag the remorseful organization was offering up. Most importantly, it meant the end of basketball in Toronto for another long summer. Not the case on Monday. Monday night was a celebration, a show of appreciation from a starved fan base to a team that has captured their admiration with resilience and hard play. It was a night of reflection, looking back at where they came from and rejoicing in what theyve accomplished. It wasnt a goodbye. Theyll see them again in five or six days. "Weve got to have some of the most devoted fans in the league," he continued. "Ive been here through the struggles and tough times and our fans were still right there with us on this journey. So it definitely felt good to share it with them because they played a major part in it as well." Although DeRozan was in uniform, available to play if it would have come to that, he was given the night off to rest going into his playoff debut next weekend. As it turns out, they didnt need him, not against the league-worst Bucks on Monday night. It was the 11th time theyve played without a member of their first unit - a group that has won more games than any starting five in franchise history - and the 11th time theyve come away victorious. With the Raptors all-star guard cheerleading from the sidelines, Greivis Vasquez started in his stead, pacing the team with 25 points and seven assists. "It was a fun win," said Vasquez, who knocked down his first six shots, five of them from beyond the arc. "They gave me a chance to start, I just went out there and did my job." Performances like his, like Tyler Hansbroughs double-double in 20 minutes, are a big part of whats gotten them to this point. DeRozan has carried this team more often than not, so too has Lowry - who scored 16 of his 24 points in the second half - but when one or both have needed it, someone has generally been waiting and ready to back them up. "All it takes is the right chemistry, the right group of guys and you can do whatever it takes," DeRozan said. "You dont need no big name players, you dont need this, that and the third, what people supposedly say you need. Were proof of that and we continue to keep growing, keep learning and keep building. On to the next step." The next step, as the Raptors leading scorer puts it, is Wednesdays regular season finale in New York. With a win over the Knicks, Toronto would lock down the Eastern Conferences third seed and face whomever slots into sixth, most likely Washington. The Raptors would fall to fourth and play the fifth place team - likely Brooklyn - if they should lose on Wednesday and the Bulls defeat the Bobcats in Charlotte. "Im more worried about us, more so than who we play," said Casey. "Its about us, about our health, the rest, whatever we decide to do in that situation. If we play Brooklyn we play Brooklyn. If we play Washington we play Washington. There are no easy teams left in the playoffs right now. All of the teams are very capable. Brooklyn is probably more playoff-ready. But we cant control that. And Im not going into [Wednesdays] game trying to control that." The Raptors coach said he has not decided whether DeRozan - second in the NBA in minutes logged this year - will play in Wednesdays season finale. Home sweet home The Raptors will finish the season with 26 wins at home for the fourth time in franchise history. After dropping eight of their first 12 games at the ACC, they have become one of the toughest teams to beat on home court, winning 22 of 29 since the end of December. "Coach definitely stressed to us, weve got to protect home court," DeRozan said of the turnaround. "Thats big. We cant let teams come in here and think they can get wins. We really started taking it personally, understanding weve got to use our crowd to our advantage. Everybody bought in, so every time we were home we felt comfortable and felt that we could get any win." "I think our guys have gotten better, matured, improved, I think more than anything else," Dwane Casey said of their success at home. "You should have the same approach whether youre on the road, playing on the moon, wherever youre playing youve got to have the same approach and our guys have done a good job of that, whether were on the road or at home." They were undefeated, 19-0 in games they led going into the fourth quarter in Toronto, something that should serve them well as they go into the first round of the playoffs with home-court advantage. The stat With their fourth straight win over Milwaukee, the Raptors swept the season series with the Bucks for the first time in team existence. The quote "We had group at the start of the season that was motivated, dedicated to winning," said Lowry, "and when everything didnt pan out we made a move and we got a group of guys who came in that really filled the voids that we needed. Everyone is on the same page. Vapormax Plus Noir Pas Cher .com) - The Columbus Blue Jackets rewarded starting goaltender and pending restricted free agent Sergei Bobrovsky with a four-year contract extension on Friday. Air Max 97 Plus Femme Pas Cher .com) - The Columbus Blue Jackets rewarded starting goaltender and pending restricted free agent Sergei Bobrovsky with a four-year contract extension on Friday. http://www.outletairmaxpascher.fr/fausse-vapormax-plus.html . -- Masahiro Tanaka knows that first appearance in a spring training game for the New York Yankees will be scrutinized.Orlando, FL (SportsNetwork.com) - The Oklahoma Sooners and Clemson Tigers both fell short of lofty expectations this season and will settle for meeting one another in the 2014 Russell Athletic Bowl on Monday at the Florida Citrus Bowl. Bob Stoops Sooners were ranked in the top-five to start the season and considered a favorite in the Big 12. After winning its first four games of the campaign, Oklahoma failed to find consistency the rest of the way, winning back-to-back games just once over the course of the final eight outings, culminating in a rather modest 8-4 record. Oklahoma extended it bowl streak to 16 seasons under Stoops. The program is 28-20 all-time in the postseason and its 28 bowl victories represent the third most all-time. Dabo Swinneys Tigers were supposed to give defending national champion Florida State a run for its money in the ACC this year, and although the team almost pulled off the upset in Tallahassee back on Sept. 20 (23-17 OT), the team played second fiddle to the Seminoles in the ACCs Atlantic Division. Still, Clemson finished a respectable 9-3 on the year, thanks to wins in eight of the last nine games. The Tigers are seeking their fourth straight 10-win season. Clemson is 18-18 in postseason play all-time. The Tigers have won two straight bowls, including a thrilling 40-35 win over Ohio State in last years Orange Bowl. OU holds a 2-1 edge in the series with Clemson. These two teams havent met since the 1989 Citrus Bowl, a 13-6 Clemson victory. The Sooners have had to adjust on offense due to injuries, especially to quarterback Trevor Knight. The team had to rely more on the run with redshirt freshman Cody Thomas filling in, but that has been a strength anyway, with Oklahoma ranking eighth nationally in rushing at an impressive 268.6 yards per game. Freshman Samaje Perine certainly made an immediate impact, as he set the NCAA record for most rushing yards in a game (427 yards against Kansas). The 5-11, 243-pound youngster finished the season with an astounding 1,579 yards and 21 touchdowns en route to All-America honors. Redshirt sophomore Alex Ross (6-1, 221) was a distant second in ground production, but still managed to amass 564 yards and three scores on 6.6 yards per carry. The good news is that Knight will be back on the field in Orlando. He threw for 2,197 yards and 14 TDs before going down to injury. Receivers Sterling Shepard (50 receptions, 957 yards, five TDs) and Durron Neal (40 receptions, 508 yards, three TDs) will certainly be happy to have their starting quarterback return. Just to have him (Knight) back out there with his leadership and his energy and all the experience that comes with his game is good for us receivers to get back on the same page with the quarterback we started with, Neal said. We kind of got back in a rhythm right away. He hadnt thrown a ball in a while, so we knocked a little rust off. The ball is coming just as they were prior to him getting hurt, and every day I can see hiim improving. Air Max 90 Homme Pas Cher Fausse. . The Oklahoma defense had problems with consistency this season. The Sooners were solid against the run, allowing just 109.6 yards per game, but struggled big time against the pass, yielding a generous 272.7 yards per game through the air. Sophomore linebacker Dominique Alexander led all Sooners with 98 total tackles. Junior linebacker Eric Striker was a difference maker upfield. Of his 56 total tackles, 14 came behind the line of scrimmage, including 7.5 sacks. Redshirt sophomore cornerback Zack Sanchez (39 tackles), is the secondarys top ball-hawk with six of the teams 12 total interceptions. Clemson has played through some offensive adversity this year as well and will need to continue to do so in this game. The team will be without the services of freshman phenom Deshaun Watson, who suffered a torn ACL late in the season. The dual-threat youngster makes the Clemson offense much more dangerous, as he passed for 1,466 yards and 14 TDs this season, while rushing for an additional five scores. The good news is the team has a veteran it can lean on in Cole Stoudt. The senior signal-caller has started and come off the bench this season, having thrown for 1,573 yards and six TDs. Freshman wideout Artavis Scott (68 receptions, 851 yards, seven TDs) and sophomore Mike Williams (48 receptions, 918 yards, five TDs) headline a talented receiving corps for the Tigers. The rushing attack is not the preferred mode of travel for the Clemson offense at a modest 153.0 yards per game. Wayne Gallman tops all players with 714 yards and four TDs on the ground for Clemson. The Tigers will also be breaking in new co-offensive coordinators (Tony Elliott and Jeff Scott), as Chad Morris has taken the head coaching job at SMU. I am very happy for Chad and his family, said Swinney. This is a great opportunity and he is the right fit for SMU. I am very appreciative of the job he has done here the last four years. We have 41 wins, the most in any four- year period in Clemson history, and the offense he has directed had a lot to do with that. Our offense has performed at a record rate for this four-year period. The Clemson defense is the primary reason the team is on the verge of another double-digit win season. The Tigers lead the nation in total defense at a meager 259.6 yards per game and have shown equal disdain for the run (97.7 ypg) and the pass (161.9 ypg). Thanks to perhaps the nations best front seven, Clemson was really able to bring pressure on opposing QBs, racking up 44 sacks on the season. There are no shortage of playmakers on the Clemson defense, but the anchor of the unit is two-time All-American Vic Beasley. Regarded as one of the nations premier pass rushers and a probable first-round NFL draft pick, Beasley has once again dominated up front, collecting 18.5 TFL and 11 sacks this season. Linebacker Stephone Anthony is a defensive leader as well, pacing the team with 87 total tackles (9.5 TFL, 2.5 sacks). ' ' '