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Bosh takes over late, leads Raptors over Warriors

Nov 1, 2008 - 3:33 AM TORONTO (Ticker) -- The Toronto Raptors barely managed to survive in regulation. But with five extra minutes to work with, it was no sweat.

Chris Bosh and Jose Calderon took over down the stretch and the Raptors scored the first eight points of the overtime period Friday night as they survived their home opener with a 112-108 victory over the Golden State Warriors.

The Warriors charged ahead with an explosive fourth quarter before Bosh asserted himself and helped turn things around. For most of the night, he was content to settle for jump shots and easy layups. One of the league leaders in free-throw attempts last season, Bosh didn't get to the line until late in the fourth quarter Friday. His renewed aggressiveness that helped put the clamps on the Warriors' run.

"It was one of those games where, playing against this team, it's all about getting stops," Bosh said. "We knew we were going to score, that's never a problem for us. We just have to make sure that we play good defense."

The All-Star forward scored 10 of his 31 points in the final frame - including six in the last 67 seconds - and drew contact on three possessions in the final three minutes. With the Raptors down by one with 29 seconds remaining, Bosh drove the baseline and finished with a dunk to give his club a one-point edge.

After Al Harrington's 3-pointer put Golden State back on top, Bosh answered again, this time drawing a foul on a spin move in the middle of the lane and knocking down both foul shots to knot the game at 96-96.

"Through the night, we did a lot of good things and had an opportunity to win the game, but guys like Chris Bosh were too much of a handful down the stretch," Warriors forward Corey Maggette said.

Calderon - who collected 16 points and 13 assists - got things started in the extra period with a driving layup, then found Bosh for a long jumper two possessions later as the Raptors built an eight-point cushion. The Warriors missed their first seven field-goal attempts in overtime.

"I am proud of them," Raptors head coach Sam Mitchell said. "We played tough defense, we got some key stops. Every time we needed a stop, we got a stop. We were outmanned, they had some size advantages on us. Our guys just sucked it up and guarded their guy."

Toronto drained 10 consecutive free throws over the final 59 seconds to seal it.

It was the Raptors' second win in a row, as they opened the season with a road win over the Atlantic Division rival Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday.

"This was one of the games that last year would have been tough to win," Toronto guard Anthony Parker said. "They play with such a big lineup and they isolate and do some things you might not see and cannot really practice for. I was proud of the way we battled back, especially in the (last) five minutes of regulation to give ourselves a chance to win."

As usual for the Warriors, they seemed to be able to score at will throughout the game but wound up suffering their second tough defeat in a row. They opened the season thinking upset when they faced off against rising Western Conference power New Orleans, only to fall, 108-103.

Friday was no different offensively, as they buried 11 3-pointers and held a 46-36 rebounding edge, but they didn't quite have enough even after nearly pulling out a win at the end of regulation.

After Bosh's game-tying free throws, the Warriors had 15 seconds to try to move back on top, but Maggette slipped on a drive to the basket. Toronto got the ball back with seven-tenths of a second remaining, but Parker's 3-point attempt just missed.

"I guess it was a good game," Warriors head coach Don Nelson said. "I thought we competed for most of the game. It wasn't meant to be at the end, I guess. We had our shots at the end, we just didn't make them."

Maggette struggled throughout, hitting just 4-of-15 from the field. Harrington, however, picked up the slack, leading all scorers with 26 points on 10-of-21 shooting, including 6-of-12 from the arc. The forward added 11 rebounds, while reserve forward Ronny Turiaf provided a spark with five blocks off the bench.

The Warriors registered yet another 100-point performance even without the benefit of a natural point guard. They have been looking for answers at the position all month, as starter Monta Ellis is out until at least mid-December after suffering a torn ligament in his left ankle this summer.

Nelson opted to go with an unorthodox lineup Friday, and the move paid off. Swingmen Stephen Jackson and Kelenna Azubuike - neither a natural point guard - took turns running the offense, and the Warriors didn't seem to lose a step.

The two combined for nine assists but did most of their damage when they put the ball on the floor themselves, repeatedly driving to the hoop to exploit Toronto's perimeter defense, which was a step slow all night. Jackson collected 19 points and seven boards, while Azubuike added 14 and four assists off the bench.

The Raptors had another strong shooting performance, connecting on 40-of-78 (51 percent) and knocking down 26-of-30 from the free-throw line. Andrea Bargnani, who played 30 minutes off the bench as starting center Jermaine O'Neal struggled with foul trouble, scored 19 on 8-of-10 shooting and added three blocks.

"We were like, 'Who's this No. 7 out there?'" Bosh said. "He just played aggressive, and I think that's good for him. He's posting guys up, and people are starting to switch pick-and-rolls with him now. He's making people pay for leaving him open."