The Toronto Raptors host the Washington Wizards in Game 2 of their best of 7 series on Tuesday night. Toronto won the series opener on Saturday by a score of 114-106. The Raptors are the top seed in the Eastern Conference, while the Wizards are the 8th seed. The Toronto Raptors are -6.5 over the Washington Wizards on Tuesday.
This series should be a highly contested one, as the two teams split the season series, two wins a piece. Both teams feature terrific guard play; with the Raptors having Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, and the Wizards countering with John Wall and Bradley Beal. The Raptors and the Wizards both have the veteran depth that is needed to win a postseason series.
Raptors Love Playing at Home
The Toronto Raptors were tied for the best home record in the NBA during the regular season, and they continued the trend in game 1. The Raptors used their depth to come from behind and knock off the Wizards. Raptors’ forward, Serge Ibaka, had a team high 23 points on 8-11 shooting. Toronto shot 53 percent from the field in the opener.
Despite winning game 1, Toronto will need much better play from both Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan if they are going to win game 2. The talented duo combined to score just 28 points and coughed up 7 turnovers on Saturday. Reserve, Delon Wright, stepped up and contributed 18 points to help lead the Raptors to victory. Toronto will need another great game from their bench if they want to take a 2-0 series lead.
Wizards Know They Can Compete
Washington looked like the better team for most of Game 1 on Saturday. Wizards’ point guard, John Wall, was the best player on the floor and finished with 23 points and 15 assists. The Wizards didn’t look phased by the raucous Raptors crowd, but just simply couldn’t make enough plays down the stretch. Bradley Beal, one of the NBA’s premier three point shooters, will need to make more than two shots from downtown in Game 2.
Markieff Morris also had a strong performance in the series opener. Morris had 22 points and 11 rebounds, but got hurt late in the game. The Wizards will need Morris to be healthy if they want to steal game 2 on the road.
Wizards Even the Series
Forget about the playoff seeds in this series, because these are two very evenly matched teams. This game, and series, will come down to which guard duo will have the better night. Look for Bradley Beal to have a much better shooting night, and take some of the pressure off Wall.
The Air Canada Centre will once again be rocking, but the Wizards have seen this type of atmosphere before. Toronto went on a big run late in the game Saturday to get the win, but the Wizards feel like they gave the game away. The Wizards will win this game and even the series 1-1. Bet on the Washington Wizards -6.5 over the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday.
