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Lin buries game-winning 3 in last second

Feb 15, 2012 - 4:52 AM Toronto, ON (Sports Network) - Linsanity has reached Canada.

Jeremy Lin knocked down a game-winning three-pointer with 0.5 seconds left Tuesday night, lifting the New York Knicks to a 90-87 comeback win over the Toronto Raptors at Air Canada Centre.

"We called an iso at the top of the key," said Lin about the final play. "He (Raptors guard Jose Calderon) was trying to push me left and he backed up a little bit and I just thought I could hit the three and I tried to take it down to as little time as possible."

Lin scored 27 points with a career-high 11 assists and now has 136 points in his first five games as a starter, eclipsing Shaquille O'Neal's 129 for the most since the NBA/ABA merger.

Amare Stoudemire added 21 points and nine rebounds in his first game back after missing four straight to mourn the death of his brother.

The Knicks have won six straight games, all with big contributions from Lin, and are above .500 for the first time since they were 6-5 following a loss at Memphis on January 12.

"I love my team," Lin added. "We play so hard and we play both ends of the floor. We're starting to click right now and we're just thankful we could get six games in a row."

Calderon paced the Raptors with 25 points, nine assists, and seven rebounds. Linas Kleiza had a double-double with 15 points and 11 boards and DeMar DeRozan added 14 points for the Raptors, who have lost five of their last six games.

"We saw after the Lakers, we can compete against anybody," said Calderon about his team's effort. "We know what we have to do. They are a very good team, they have confidence and they beat us at the end."

The Raptors led by as many as 17 in this contest, but the Knicks ripped off a 13-1 run to end the game, which included seven points from Lin. His three- point play with 1:05 remaining tied the game at 87 after Tyson Chandler blocked a DeRozan jumper.

The Raptors then came up empty on a Leandro Barbosa three and the Knicks had the ball with 43.7 to play.

Iman Shumpert's jumper missed the mark but Chandler pulled down the offensive rebound and kicked it out to Lin, who held for the last shot.

The Knicks spread the floor for Lin, who dribbled to the top of the key and let fly with a three-pointer that gave the Knicks their first lead since it was 11-10 in the first quarter.

The Raptors ripped off a 10-0 run midway through the first that included two Calderon triples and took a 28-21 lead into the second stanza.

The Knicks turned the ball over 11 times in the first half, leading to 21 points for the Raptors as they took a 47-36 advantage into the locker room.

New York got as close as seven after a Nick Novak three with just under a minute left in the third but Toronto, led by Calderon's 13 points in the quarter, maintained control of the game and led 75-66 heading into the fourth.

The teams exchanged runs in the early stages of the final quarter, allowing the Raptors to take an 86-77 lead with 4:15 left.

Game Notes

Both teams will play the second of a back-to-back on Wednesday as New York hosts Sacramento and Toronto will play at home versus San Antonio...Chandler presented Raptors coach Dwane Casey with his 2011 NBA championship ring before the game. Casey was an assistant on the title-winning Dallas Mavericks last year and Chandler was the team's starting center.