Raptors 78 - 93 Wizards
Final
  for this game

Winless Wizards host Raptors

Jan 10, 2012 - 3:44 PM (Sports Network) - If at first you don't succeed, try, try, again.

That's the motto of the Washington Wizards this season in their quest to end the worst start in franchise history. The 0-8 club will close out a three-game homestand tonight versus the Toronto Raptors at the Verizon Center.

Washington fell to 0-4 as the host this season with Sunday's 93-72 loss versus the Minnesota Timberwolves, as Nick Young and Trevor Booker recorded 14 points apiece in defeat. Andray Blatche and John Wall each scored 10 points for the Wizards, who shot just 34.5 percent for the game.

"There's really not much to say. Disappointment and embarrassment doesn't come close," said Wizards head coach Flip Saunders. "My job over the next couple days is to try and find out a way to get all the guys on this team playing up to their expected level."

The Wizards could be without forward Rashard Lewis tonight and he's listed as questionable with a sore right knee.

Toronto will play nine of its next 12 games away from Air Canada Centre, starting with tonight's tilt in D.C. It ended a two-game slide with a 97-87 victory over Minnesota last night and won for the third time in five tries.

Andrea Bargnani had 31 points and Amir Johnson finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds for the Raptors, who closed the game on a 20-7 run to beat Minnesota for the eighth straight time up north. Jose Calderon added 14 points and Leandro Barbosa scored 13 off the bench in a winning effort. The Raptors kicked off a stretch of three straight games in as many nights.

"It's not just about playing against the other team, it's about playing against ourselves," Johnson said of the stretch, a common occurrence for teams in the lockout-shortened season. "We've got to stay healthy and keep our bodies fresh to get through it."

Raptors guard Jerryd Bayless (ankle) is questionable for tonight.

Toronto and Washington split four matchups a year ago and are playing the first of four meetings this season. The Raptors, though, have lost 10 of their past 14 trips to the Verizon Center.






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