National Basketball Association
Toronto 103, Oklahoma City 98
When: 8:00 PM ET, Wednesday, November 4, 2015
Where: Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Officials: #33 Sean Corbin, #21 Dedric Taylor, #65 Sean Wright
Attendance: 18203

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Coming into this season, Toronto Raptors guard Demar DeRozan wanted to be more aggressive. He said it was something he had worked on in the offseason.

DeRozan displayed the effects of that attacking style when the Raptors took on the Oklahoma City Thunder.

He scored 10 of his game high 28 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Raptors to a 103-98 comeback victory over Thunder on Wednesday at Chesapeake Energy Arena.

"Key was just being aggressive," DeRozan said. "Coach was telling me to get to the rim, be aggressive. Either I was going to create something, get a bucket or get fouled. I kept at it."

DeRozan made 7 of 18 shots from the field and 14 of 15 from the line to go with five rebounds and three assists. Guard Kyle Lowry had 17 points and center Jonas Valanciunas also finished with 17 points and added 11 rebounds as Toronto moved to 5-0.

Oklahoma City (3-2) dropped its second straight game despite guard Russell Westbrook and forward Kevin Durant putting up big numbers. Westbrook totaled 22 points, 16 assists and eight turnovers. Durant added 27 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the field, seven rebounds and three blocked shots.

Center Enes Kanter came off the bench to score 15 points for the Thunder.

The Thunder had 19 turnovers on the night and were outrebounded 45-41. But the Raptors did the most damage at the free throw line, making 32 of 39 to the Thunder's 12 of 14.

"When we got stops and got out on the break, I thought really good things happened for us," Thunder coach Billy Donovan said. "I think trying to create an identity defensively, getting stops, I think we had some really difficult mismatches."

With 4:05 left in the fourth quarter, Durant hit a free throw after a technical foul to put Oklahoma City up 94-87. Toronto then got a steal that led to two DeRozan free throws.

Westbrook was fouled and made one of his two foul shots before DeRozan scored to cut the lead to 95-91. Thunder forward Serge Ibaka and Valanciunas exchanged foul shots and Oklahoma City still led by four.

Lowry cut the lead to two with a driving layup. Westbrook missed a layup and Valanciunas grabbed the rebound. He was fouled and tied the score at 97 with two free throws.

Durant missed a fadeaway jumper from the corner and the Raptors got the ball to DeRozan, who gave them the lead with 47 seconds left.

Westbrook tried to tie the score but missed a layup. Forward DeMarre Carroll hit two free throws and the Raptors were up 101-97 with 16 seconds left.

Durant made one of two free throws, but there was a scramble for the loose ball on the rebound and a jump ball was called. The Raptors got the tip and DeRozan closed out the game at the line.

"We stayed resilient," DeRozan said. "We got critical stops. Critical rebounds when we needed it. Got some good buckets down the stretch."

Once again the Thunder offense looked bad in the final moments.

"I didn't think it stagnated," Durant said. "We just missed shots. We were getting downhill, getting to the paint. Dion (Waiters) missed a nice, wide open three, I missed a turn-around on the baseline, Russell missed a few layups getting to the rim. I mean, we make those shots and you say it's great offense. It's a make or miss league. We missed them and they made them."

NOTES: Oklahoma City Thunder F Kevin Durant isn't pleased that he's averaging only 1.8 assists per game. "It's an issue, Durant said. "I'm playing a lot behind the pick and rolls, spotting up, playing the four a lot. Not getting a lot of opportunities in the pick and roll. But that's on me. I've got to rebound better. Then I have to be more aggressive when I get it. But that's unacceptable for somebody, who I feel as though I can do everything on the court. It's unacceptable to average only two assists." ... With his team off to a fast start, G Kyle Lowry likes what he has seen so far. "I think it was the start that we needed," Lowry said. "Either we could have a real good start, or a tough start with pretty much 10 new guys. But I think we've done a good job of just staying focused with our principles." F Serge Ibaka has cut down down his 3-point attempts this season with only three in the first four games. "I'm not going to try to force myself to find three," Ibaka said. "If a three find me...I'm ready to shoot." Raptors coach Dwane Casey compared the atmosphere at the Chesapeake Energy Arena to the University of Kentucky.
Top Game Performances
 
Toronto   Oklahoma City
DeMar DeRozan 28 Scoring Kevin Durant 27
DeMar DeRozan 3 Assists Russell Westbrook 16
Jonas Valanciunas 11 Rebounds Steven Adams 7
DeMar DeRozan 14 Free Throws Made Kevin Durant 5
DeMarre Carroll 4 Steals Nick Collison 2
Patrick Patterson 2 Blocks Steven Adams 4
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Toronto 103 41.8 5-14 32-39 12 45 3 14 15
Oklahoma City 98 47.6 8-23 12-14 26 41 10 8 19
Upcoming Games
  • Oklahoma City will play their next game on the road against Chicago. The Thunder have a W/L % of .750 after a win and .000 after a loss.
  • Toronto will play their next game on the road against Orlando. The Raptors have a W/L % of 1.000 after a win and .000 after a loss.