The Toronto Raptors were firing on all cylinders Sunday afternoon as they scored a season-high point total and set a new franchise record with 44 assists in their 142-113 win over the Detroit Pistons.
Toronto’s previous high water mark was 40 assists in a home victory vs. Milwaukee back in 2019. However Pascal Siakam & Co. ran roughshod over a depleted Pistons roster that has now lost 11 straight contests, extending their streak of consecutive games with at least 25 assists to 9 games.
With the win, the Raptors move to 6-7 on the year and are now tied with the Nets for 10th spot in the Eastern Conference. Meanwhile, Detroit saw their record fall to 2-12, putting them in sole possession of last place in the entire NBA.
The Raps were led by Siakam’s 23pts/7reb/ast effort. Perhaps more important for the club was the return of OG Anunoby following a 3 game absence due to a lacerated finger.
Toronto started off hot, as 6 different players recorded at least one assist in the 1st quarter alone, as the team earned an assist on 12 of 14 field goals out of the gate. Leading 32-20 after the first frame, the Raptors extended their lead to 24 at halftime and never looked back.
“We came out ready, that was the biggest part for this game. We came out dialed in, we were playing aggressive from the beginning of the game. We had some issues lately with coming out slow from the locker room so that was huge for us tonight.” said Jakob Poeltl after the game.
Of Detroit’s starters, guard Cade Cunningham was the only one to reach double digits in terms of points as the Pistons’ offensive woes continued. After starting the year off 2-1, the team has now gone nearly a month without a victory. Unfortunately things won’t be getting any easier for them either as their next game is against the reigning NBA champion Denver Nuggets on Monday night.
Toronto is next in action on Tuesday night in a group stage contest vs. Orlando as part of the NBA’s in-season tournament.
Photo: All-Pro Reels. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.