By Canadian Press

Raptors learning to close out close games after losing eight nail-biters

Dec 3, 2024 | 9:03 PM

TORONTO — The Toronto Raptors are getting sharper in the fourth quarter, and it’s getting them into the win column.

Scottie Barnes had seven points, RJ Barrett added six, and Jakob Poeltl had nine as Toronto outscored the Indiana Pacers 29-27 in the final period of the Raptors’ 122-111 victory on Tuesday. It was Toronto’s second consecutive win and third in four games.

“I think we’re just starting to figure out how to win some of these games at the end,” said Barrett. “I think we’ve also been doing a good job from the start and giving ourselves a lead, so that even when teams make a run, we’re still OK, instead of just going all the way down.”

That was exactly the case on Tuesday, with the Raptors leading Indiana by as much as 24 points but the Pacers closed the gap in the fourth with an 8-0 run pulling Indiana to within a possession and less than seven minutes less to play.

That caused Toronto head coach Darko Rajakovic to call a timeout and settle his team down.

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“He was very calm in that timeout,” said Barrett, who is from Mississauga, Ont. “He just spoke to us, and we knew what to do, and we responded.”

Being able to respond wasn’t the Raptors’ strong suit to start the season. Eight of their 15 losses this season have been by six or fewer points. Five have been a one-possession game, with Toronto losing by three or fewer points.

Rajakovic said that in the pivotal timeout he reminded his players that they just had to focus on one possession at a time.

“We got really focused on us, how we’re executing on the offensive end and defensive end,” said Rajakovic. “I thought that our execution down the stretch in the last four to five minutes was really, really good.

“I think we’re getting better in that aspect.”

Barnes, who finished with a career-high 35 points, agreed with his coach.

“That fourth quarter, we did a great job locking in, getting stops, the stops that were really needed,” he said. “We weren’t fouling as much as we were in the third quarter.

“When it came down to really trying to get a stop and focus and lock in, we know we got it done.”

Barnes and Barrett have been a potent combination, sharing playmaking responsibilities while starting point guard Immanuel Quickley continues to recover from a partially torn UCL.

Barrett finished with 29 points, narrowly missing out on his fourth consecutive game at Scotiabank Arena with 30 or more points. He grinned when asked about pairing with Barnes.

“Looks good, don’t it? Looks good. I like playing with Scottie,” said Barrett. “Yeah, no. I mean, it’s fun, you know? It’s fun.

“I think we complement each other. I think we don’t step on each other’s toes at all.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 3, 2024.

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John Chidley-Hill, The Canadian Press