ry similar to the Nik that we're accustomed to seeing."Victor Oladipo scored 12 for the Magic and Arron Afflalo had 10.Vasquez started for the Raptors in place of DeRozan. Toronto's leading scorer missed his second straight game after injuring his left foot when he landed awkwardly after taking a jump shot against the Clippers. DeRozan will travel with the Raptors on a five-game road trip that begins Friday at Denver."We can't really have him out too long,Air Jordan 13 White Red," Vasquez said of DeRozan. "We need him."Also absent for Toronto was forward Patrick Patterson, who suffered a broken nose Saturday, but scored the winning basket in Monday's win at Brooklyn. Patterson underwent a procedure Tuesday to re-set the break.Johnson limped off with a sore right ankle after fouling Oladipo under the Toronto basket at 2:17 of the fourth. Johnson was wincing as he got up and needed assistance walking to the locker room, but said afterward that he was fine.Lowry scored 17 points in the first, going 5 for 5 from 3-point range, and the Raptors made all eight of their long range attempts to lead 33-20 after one."He set the tone in the first half with his 3s," Casey said of Lowry. "His aggressive play means a lot. His veteran leadership out there on the court, you can't say enough."The eight 3-pointers in a single quarter tied the franchise high. Toronto also had eight 3-pointers in one quarter on Nov. 6, 2009,Air Jordan 3 Black Grey, at New Orleans.Vasquez extended Toronto's hot shooting streak with another 3 early in the second before finally missing from outside at 9:18. Toronto's previous streak of nine consecutive made 3-pointers came Feb. 27, 2005, against the Los Angeles Lakers.Johnson and Steve Novak each scored six points in the second as Toronto led 55-40 at halftime.Lowry scored 13 points in the third and Johnson added eight as Toronto took an 80-65 lead into the fourth.Game notes Valanciunas was selected to play in the Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star weekend. ... Raptors F Tyler Hansbrough returned after missing 14 games with a sore left ankle. ... Toronto doesn't play at home again until Feb. 10 against New Orleans.Copyright by STATS LLC and The Associated Press
Dwight Howard, Jeremy Lin power Rockets pastSpursRecommend0Tweet0Associated PressHOUSTON -- James Harden was out with a thumb injury, and then Dwight Howard got off to a slow start.It sure looked as if it was going to be a long night for the Houston Rockets. Then everything changed in the third quarter.Howard got back on track and a pair of role players stepped up to help Houston rally for a 97-90 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday.The Rockets trailed by as many as 15 points in the first half before scoring 33 in the third to go on top. San Antonio used an 11-3 spurt to pull within two in the final minutes, but Howard and Jeremy Lin helped Houston hold on for the win."We just kept grinding it out,Nike Free 5.0 Pink," Rockets coach Kevin McHale said. "We changed a couple of things defensively and the guys kind of dug in and got stops."Howard had 23 points and 16 rebounds for Houston, which enjoyed a 55-39 advantage on the glass. Terrence Jones scored 21 points and Lin added 18 points and eight assists while starting in Harden's spot.Harden, who leads the team with 23.7 points a game, was out with a bruised left thumb."I know I missed a lot of shots early," Howard said. "I didn't lose focus. I got a little frustrated because I wanted to make those shots, especially againstTim (Duncan). But I just tried to stick with it and show the team that no matter what I'm going to battle."Boris Diaw scored a season-high 22 points for the Spurs, and he also had 11 rebounds. Tony Parker added 17 points and Duncan had 12 points,Nike Free Run Orange, 14 rebounds and four blocks.Houston was clinging to a 90-88 lead with less than two minutes left when Howard had a dunk and Lin made a jumper. Duncan had a layup on the other end, but Lin sunk a pair of free throws to secure the victory.Houston has won all three meetings with the Southwest Division-leading Spurs to secure the season series for the first time since 1996-97. They have one scheduled game le