The Toronto Raptors punched their ticket to the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs on Sunday, making quick work of the Brooklyn Nets, 150-122, at HP Fieldhouse in Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.
Apart from setting a date against the Boston Celtics (who also swept their first-round opponents), the defending champions also managed to break two league records along the way.
The Toronto Raptors are the first team to score 150 points in a non-OT playoff game since the Boston Celtics way back in 1990. pic.twitter.com/OaLHkI06Mu
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) August 24, 2020
The Raptors were on fire from the opening tip and never let go of the gas pedal until the final buzzer sounded. They scored above 30 points in all four quarters, thanks in large part to their beautiful offensive execution.
Toronto made 55.4 percent of their shots from the field (56-of-101) and 46.8 percent of their triples (22-of-47). They also shared the wealth exponentially, with six players scoring in double figures. Norman Powell came off the bench and erupted for 29 markers, while Serge Ibaka and Pascal Siakam hand 27 and 20, respectively.
Apart from the brilliant play of the starters, the Raptors' bench also made history on Sunday.
FROM ELIAS: The @Raptors are the first team with 100 bench points in a regular season or playoff game since starters were first tracked in 1970-71. pic.twitter.com/koShd1jsWn
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) August 24, 2020
Toronto put up 150 points in Game 4, which is quite the feat in itself. A hundred of those came from their reserves, which just sums up how amazing this team has been playing all year.
In a night where Raptors All-Star Kyle Lowry had to leave the game early due to a bum ankle, the rest of his team picked up the slack and made sure to finish the job. No sense in prolonging the inevitable, after all, as the Raptors simply overpowered the undermanned Nets and earned themselves some well-deserved rest before the next round.
NBA official says earliest start date for Raps-Celtics would be Thursday, for what it's worth
— Bruce Arthur (@bruce_arthur) August 24, 2020
Most pundits certainly did not expect the Raptors to be this formidable this year, following the departure of Kawhi Leonard. The defending champions certainly sent out a clear message after that perfect first-round series.
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