TORONTO -- For a young Toronto Raptors squad that had almost no playoff experience, Saturdays Game 1 had a little bit of everything -- from a faulty shot clock, to a GM hollering a profanity and a deliriously loud crowd dying for a post-season victory. [url=https://www.cheapathleticsonline.com/]Oakla

TORONTO -- For a young Toronto Raptors squad that had almost no playoff experience, Saturdays Game 1 had a little bit of everything -- from a faulty shot clock, to a GM hollering a profanity and a deliriously loud crowd dying for a post-season victory. Oakland Athletics Pro Shop . It was a loss. But it was also a learning experience. Deron Williams and Joe Johnson had 24 points each to lift Brooklyn to a 94-87 win over the Raptors, making their first playoff appearance since 08. "I thought we played a little bit as expected as it is our first playoff game," Toronto coach Dwane Casey said. "But still as bad as we played, we put ourselves in position to win and thats the approach we have to take. The series is now at only one game, there is still a lot of basketball to be played." Kyle Lowry, whose locker had a sign overhead that read "Good luck dad," had 22 points for Toronto. Jonas Valanciunas had 17 points and 18 boards in his first post-season appearance. "Just keep playing," was Lowrys message to his teammates after the loss. Greivis Vasquez added 18 points while DeMar DeRozan finished with 14 on an afternoon punctuated by Raptors GM Masai Ujiris apology for dropping an F-bomb when addressing a crowd, and the shot clock that malfunctioned midway through the third quarter. The Raptors might be the Atlantic Division champs and No. 3 seed in the East but theyre considered underdogs in this series based on experience -- or lack thereof. The Nets starting five came in with a combined 417 post-season starts. Torontos starters: zero. But if they felt any pressure, Valanciunas and Lowry certainly didnt show it. The 21-year-old Valanciunas became the first Raptor since Tracy McGrady in 2000 to record a double-double in his playoff debut and also set a record for rebounds (Keon Clarks 16 boards versus Detroit in 2002 was the previous mark). "I tell you what, I thought Jonas played big-time, he really did," Casey said. "He grew up today, that was huge for us." Paul Pierce added 15 points for the Nets and was especially lethal down the stretch, scoring nine points in the final 2:58. Shaun Livingston had 10 points as Brooklyn had 17 points off 19 Toronto turnovers. The Raptors rallied from an early 12-point deficit to take a one-point lead early in the third, but it was short-lived as Brooklyn led 67-62 heading into the fourth quarter. A basket by Lowry, then a three-pointer by Vasquez gave Toronto a 76-75 lead with 5:13 to play, but Brooklyn responded with seven straight points -- capped with a Pierce three-pointer -- to take a six-point lead with three minutes remaining. Pierce raised his hands and gestured to the crowd after his long bomb. "It was just emotions flying high, playoffs, close game, taking some shots, making some shots," Pierce said. "I really feed off the emotions of the crowd, especially on the road . . . I think its more gratifying than winning at home, I love those moments." The Raptors pulled to within five points several times over the final couple of minutes but could come no closer, sending the series into Game 2 on Tuesday at the Air Canada Centre with the Nets leading 1-0. The series shifts to Brooklyn for Game 3 on Friday. Toronto forward Amir Johnson said turnovers proved costly for the Raptors. "Tough game. Our turnovers really hurt us," he said. "They really beat us in the third quarter. All around we played good basketball, there were just a lot of turnovers." Emotions ran high even before this series started, with talk the Nets tanked down the stretch -- losing four of their last five -- to purposely drop to sixth so theyd face the less-experienced Raptors. Ujiri took the stage before the afternoon game to address pumped-up fans at Maple Leaf Square. The moment seemed to get to him as he paired an F-bomb and Brooklyn on his way off the stage. "I apologize to kids out there and to the Brooklyn guys," Ujiri said at halftime. "Nothing against them. Just trying to get our fans going. Thats it." He offered over his shoulder as he walked away: "You know how I feel. I dont like them (the Nets), but I apologize." Casey wasnt offended by Ujiris remarks. "Thats Masai, thats why our team plays like that," Casey said. "Hes a fiery guy, and that should represent how we feel. I dont have any offence of it whatsoever." Adding to an already strange afternoon, the shot clock went black with 5:57 left in the third, and after a 10-minute delay, it was decided the game would be played without one. Announcer Herbie Kuhn counted down the clock from 10 seconds on every possession. "Its not that disruptive, it is what it is," Lowry said. "You cant make excuses." The soldout Air Canada Centre crowd of 19,800, that included hip-hop artist Drake, former Raptors star Alvin Williams and Toronto FC GM Tim Bezbatchenko, was a sea of white, thanks to a pre-game T-shirt giveaway. They waved white towels. They stood and hollered for much of the game, breaking into random chants of "K-G sucks!" in reference to Nets veteran Kevin Garnett. "It was unbelievable, the atmosphere of the crowd, the intensity, the noise," Lowry said. "I can tell you the Brooklyn Nets, they were like Speak up, I cant hear, its loud in here. So it definitely affected them a little bit." Anthem singer Michael Ciufo sang the first verse of O Canada, then held up the mic and let the crowd take over, making for a stirring start to the afternoon. Outside, Maple Leaf Square was jam-packed as red-clad Raptors fans watched the game on the huge screen outside -- an idea that started with the Toronto Maple Leafs brief playoff run last year. Saturdays front page of a Toronto newspaper referred to Pierce, whos 36, and Garnett (37) as "dinosaurs." Pierce said he didnt see the paper. But when asked if hed ever played a game without a shot clock, he replied to much laughter from the media: "I dont remember if Ive ever played without it since Im a dinosaur. Its been so long." A grinning Pierce tried to chuck his headband up into the crowd as he trotted off the court after the game. Twice, fans threw it back. A reporter noted that Toronto fans clearly didnt want it. "Yes they did," Pierce said laughing. "They knew they had the cameras on them, they wanted to have pride. The third (throw) was a charm." The Raptors shot 39 per cent on the night, while the Nets shot 42. Toronto outrebounded Brooklyn 45-37. DeRozan and Terrence Ross both had shaky afternoons for Toronto -- the Nets did a great job in shutting down DeRozan, and Ross seemed to get flustered after picking up a couple of early fouls. "Weve got to make adjustments to help (DeRozan)," Casey said. "This is the time you do step up and nobody wants to win more than DeMar DeRozan. "His heart is into it, hes got sweat equity into this team. Again everybody is going to have an off night. Their whole gameplan was to take him out and theyre a veteran team and they did." Toronto (48-34) and Brooklyn (44-38) split four meetings during the regular season, with each team winning once on the opponents court. The Raptors had only opened the playoffs at home in one other year, in 2007 -- incidentally also against the (then-New Jersey) Nets. Toronto, also Atlantic Division champions that year, lost in five games. Valanciunas scored the teams first eight points of the game, and Lowry poured in 11 first-quarter points, but otherwise Johnson -- with two points -- was the only other contributor on the offensive end in opening frame. The Nets galloped out on an 18-2 run capped by a three from Williams to go up by 12 points with three minutes left in the first, and took a 29-21 lead into the second. Vasquez, with 10 second-quarter points, led the Raptors in a 14-6 run to open the frame and Toronto pulled even eight minutes before halftime. The Nets took a 50-46 advantage into the dressing room at the half. The Raptors had a brief one-point lead early in the third thanks to a three-pointer by Ross, but couldnt maintain it. The Nets led by eight before Lowry drained a three-pointer at the buzzer, pumping his fist as it cut Brooklyns lead to 67-62. Wholesale Athletics Jerseys . Bouchard went down to a 1-6, 6-1, 6-2 defeat at the hands of Svitolina in her opening match at the Sony Open on Friday. Bouchard got the rivalry going two years ago when she won the junior Wimbledon title over Svitolina. Athletics Jerseys 2019 .com) - Manu Ginobili capped off a 26-point night with a go-ahead layup with 24 seconds left in overtime, with the basket giving the San Antonio Spurs a much-needed 95-93 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans. https://www.cheapathleticsonline.com/ . But that changed when he committed a five-minute major penalty and helped pave the way for a comeback by the Philadelphia Flyers. Vincent Lecavalier scored at 2:45 of overtime and the Flyers rallied from a two-goal deficit for a 5-4 victory on Sunday.Despite joining the likes of Taylor Hall and Nathan MacKinnon as future no. 1 overall NHL picks to also be selected by a KHL team, Connor McDavids future professional team will be based in North America. “It was pretty cool honestly to get drafted over there, but by no means is that the end goal at all,” McDavid said while on TSN 1050 Wednesday. Chosen with the 77th overall pick by the Croatioan club Medvescak Zagreb, the 17-year-old said his focus is strictly on improving in the off-season heading into his NHL draft year. “Im going to look to put on some muscle, get bigger, get faster, get stronger,” he said. On a short break after a pro-longed season in which he suited up for Canada at the World Junior Championships and led the Erie Otters to the third round of the OHL playoffs, McDavid is headed to Gary Roberts renowned summer hockey camp, which he will attend for the third consecutive year. “Im well aware of the circumstance that Im going into,” McDavid jokingly mentioned when asked if he knew about what he was getting into with Roberts notoriously intense and grueling sessions. Looking ahead to next hockey season, McDavvid admitted to thinking about participating in the 2015 World Junior Championships which will be held in Toronto and Montreal. Oakland Athletics Store. After attending a Bruins-Canadiens playoff game at the Bell Centre, McDavid said the experience had him excited as he imagined what it would be like to see all the Habs jerseys in the building transformed into Canadas red and white. “It would be absolutely unbelievable,” he said. “If I am fortunate enough to play again, it would be an absolute dream come true to play on home soil.” Asked about the pressure that comes with being a no. 1 overall pick and dealing with the criticism along the lines of what Sidney Crosby has dealt with this season following his post-season struggles and the Penguins disappointing playoff elimination, McDavid said it comes with the territory, but the blame shouldnt be laid solely on the Pittsburgh captain. “He is the guy and people are going to look at him and blame him, but its a team effort and thats the way you have to look at it,” McDavid said, noting Crosby still had an “unbelievable year.” McDavid: Training with Roberts, World Jr.s ' ' '