With 2:25 remaining in the fourth quarter and the Raptors up eight, Delon Wright intercepted a pass from Bradley Beal — a turnover that lead to a bucket that pushed Toronto’s late lead to double digits. If there was a play that embodied the Raptors bench’s importance to their elimination game victory over the Wizards on Friday, that may have been the one.
Toronto’s bench mob showed up to eliminate the Wizards in Game 6
The Raptors’ bench outscored the Wizards whole team 17 to 14 in the fourth quarter. They never stop.
Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images
Toronto pulled out a tough, come-from-behind 102-92 Game 6 win over Washington to advance to the second round of the East playoffs, and it’s safe to say they wouldn’t have done it without the bench mob that’s powered them all season long.
The Raptors’ second unit accounted for 34 points, seven assists and six steals. Every bench player had a positive plus/minus in Game 6. Pascal Siakam, who was incredible defensively taking turns guarding John Wall, was plus-18. “Pascal is always guarding 17 people,” Lowry said during his post-game interview.
Toronto outscored Washington by 12 when both Wright and Fred VanVleet were on the floor. “He kind of helps everyone settle down,” Lowry continued of VanVleet. All together, the bench mob held the Wizards without a field goal for just about the first four minutes of the fourth quarter, holding them to just 4-of-16 shooting in the final 12 minutes.
The second unit (17 points) outscored the entire Wizards roster (14 points) in the fourth quarter.
“Our bench is always our favorite part. I love them,” Lowry conceded.
Lowry had a game of the ages for himself. While DeMar DeRozan struggled (16 points on 6-of-18 shooting), he turned in 24 points, six rebounds and six assists. But Toronto’s bench willed the Raptors to a win on Friday night. They were flying around the court, chasing loose balls and making plays on defense. It was the kind of basketball their second unit has played all year long.
Toronto advances to the second round now, where they’ll face the winner of the series between Cleveland and Indiana. And if their second unit plays the way it did in Game 6, Toronto will have a shot at advancing to the conference finals, no matter which team is their opponent.
See More:
