The Toronto Raptors are being heavily tested by the Washington Wizards in the first round of the playoffs, but after scoring a 108-98 win, DeMar DeRozan and company are now just a win away from advancing to the Eastern Conference semifinals. Will they be able to accomplish that this Friday? Or will the Wizards force a winner-take-all Game 7?
The Raptors finally stopped their bleeding by beating Washington in Game 5 to regain their lead in the series. DeMar DeRozan came through once again for Toronto with 32 points on 12-for-24 shooting from the field. One thing the Raptors got right on Wednesday was that they did a fine job of taking care of the leather. After back-to-back games with 18 turnovers, Toronto only committed 10 errors in Game 5, resulting in a more efficient offense. They had 26 assists for the first time since Game 1 and also shot 46. 3 percent from the floor – their best in three games. Serge Ibaka, however, in what is seemingly now a trend, sputtered again, scoring just three points on 23 minutes on the floor. If he could be more aggressive on offense, he would be taking a ton of pressure from DeRozan and Kyle Lowry, who had 17 markers in Game 5. The Raptors will look to close out the series this Friday in Washington, where they are 4-3 ATS in their last seven games there.
Betting on the Washington Wizards (-2)
The Wizards’ outside shot has been cooling off just when they needed their shooting to be hot. Over the past two games, Washington has shot only 27.9 percent from deep, knocking down just 12 of their 43 attempts from downtown over that span. In Game 5, the Wizards went just 5-for-26 from deep. Maybe Kelly Oubre Jr. needs to stop chucking shots from behind the arc, as he’s making only 18.8 percent of his 3-point shots. The Wizards, however, have won the rebounding the past two games. In Game 5, they collated 15 more rebounds than Toronto (50-35), as they seemed to have neutralized Serge Ibaka. The Wizards just needs to be more efficient on their shot-making. John Wall, who had 26 points on Wednesday, is averaging 26.6 points on 44.8 FG% in his series. Washington is 3-0 SU and ATS in its last three home games.
