Send this page to someone via email Philadelphia 76ers (51-31, third in the Eastern Conference during the regular season) vs. Toronto Raptors (58-24, second in the Eastern Conference during the regular season) Toronto; Sunday, 7 p.m. EDT EASTERN CONFERENCE SECOND ROUND: Series tied 3-3 BOTTOM LINE: The Toronto Raptors and the Philadelphia 76ers face off in game seven of the Eastern Conference second round. The 76ers won the last meeting 112-101. Jimmy Butler scored 25 points to help lead Philadelphia to the victory and Kawhi Leonard scored 29 points in the loss for Toronto. The Raptors are 32-9 on their home court. Toronto is eighth in the NBA with 114.4 points and shooting 47.4 per cent. The 76ers have gone 20-21 away from home. Philadelphia is second in the NBA with 36.9 defensive rebounds per game, led by Joel Embiid averaging 11.1. Story continues below advertisement TOP PERFORMERS: Leonard is averaging 26.6 points and 7.3 rebounds for the Raptors. Pascal Siakam has averaged 21.4 points and collected 6.7 rebounds while shooting 48.4 per cent over the last 10 games for Toronto. Ben Simmons ranks second on the 76ers with 8.8 rebounds and averages 16.9 points. Butler has averaged 18.1 points and totalled 5.9 rebounds while shooting 45.9 per cent over the last 10 games for Philadelphia. DURING THE PLAYOFFS: 76ers: Averaging 110.4 points, 49.2 rebounds, 25.2 assists, 6.6 steals and 5.3 blocks per game while shooting 46.1 per cent from the field. Their opponents have averaged 106.9 points on 43.4 per cent shooting. Raptors: Averaging 104.6 points, 41.2 rebounds, 23.0 assists, 8.1 steals and 4.0 blocks per game while shooting 46.1 per cent from the field. Their opponents have averaged 96.5 points on 41.1 per cent shooting. Raptors Injuries: Chris Boucher: out (back spasms), OG Anunoby: out (appendix). 76ers Injuries: Joel Embiid: day to day (upper respiratory infection). ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by HERO Sports, and data from Sportradar. Advertisement<doc-sep>Game 7s are nerve-racking occasions for fans, players, and coaches alike. For the fans, we remember all past Game 7s we’ve been lucky (or unlucky) to see. For the coaches and players, it’s a tense time, an evening to leave everything out on the floor. Toronto has been in this position multiple times before with all sorts of outcomes. In a 2014 first round matchup, Toronto hosted Paul Pierce and the Brooklyn Nets in a Game 7 that went down to the wire. With the game on the line, Terrence Ross made an excellent defensive play to win possession for Toronto. Down by one with a little over six seconds remaining, Kyle Lowry attempt at a game winner was thwarted at the rim by Paul Pierce, winning Brooklyn the series. In the 2016 playoffs, Toronto went through a home Game 7 against Indiana in the first round (a furious 17-4 run in the fourth quarter made it a one possession game for Indiana, but they ultimately ran out of gas) and another against Miami (a blowout win for Toronto). Finally, the Game 7 on the road against Allen Iverson and the Sixers in 2001 which ended with a missed game winner by Vince Carter. We all remember that one too. For the players, they also have their own history with Game 7s. Kyle Lowry was part of three of the four Game 7s in franchise history. Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green were part of one of the most iconic finals series, the 2013 NBA Finals, that went seven games. Serge Ibaka with the Thunder in 2016. Pascal Siakam? First Game 7. Nick Nurse? First Game 7 as a head coach in the NBA. So that’s four Game 7s. Two close losses, one close win, and one blow out win. It’s almost poetic how in 2019 — 18 years since Toronto and Philadelphia last met in the postseason — the two are in another Game 7 in the second round with the same opponent lurking in the shadows. This time however, Toronto holds home court as the higher seed. And for the first time in these Game 7s, Toronto holds the experience card. It was a young Raptor team in 2014 against the veteran Nets. A young Raptor team against the Pacers and Heat. Today, it’s an older Raptor team in prime position to take the next step of their journey. They just need to take care of this young Sixers squad at home. Now here are the details for this evening’s win or go home Game 7. Where to Watch: SportsnetOne, 7:00 PM EST Lineups: Toronto – Kyle Lowry, Danny Green, Kawhi Leonard, Pascal Siakam, Marc Gasol Philadelphia – Ben Simmons, JJ Redick, Jimmy Butler, Tobias Harris, Joel Embiid Injuries: Toronto – OG Anunoby (abdomen – OUT), Chris Boucher (back – day-to-day) Philadelphia – none ******** No Country for Young Men While the Process was sped up, they are still young in their core. Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid — the cornerstones of Philly’s franchise — are still just 22 and 25. In terms of seasons played its just two for Simmons and three for Embiid. While they still do have postseason experience, they have never been in a game of this magnitude in their short careers. The trade for Jimmy Butler has brought them much needed toughness and gusto (they may have already been eliminated had it not been for Jimmy “James” Butler), and JJ Redick has never missed the postseason in his career, but Toronto has the most important advantage at this stage: experience. Kawhi Leonard, Danny Green, and Serge Ibaka, deep postseason runs. Marc Gasol, battle tested as a leader in the swamp that is the Western Conference. Kyle Lowry and Norman Powell, the two who remember what it took to take down both Indiana and Miami three years ago. It’s difficult for me to think of Toronto as anything other than the “young team” but we forget how much this franchise has been through in the playoffs, making it past the first round every season since 2016 and subsequently gaining that experience. In short, Toronto has been there, done that. Conquering Mount Embiid In the dominant Game 3 win, Embiid was an absolute monster on both ends. He got to the line, made a few threes, but most importantly, was making life difficult at the rim for Toronto. He finished the game with 33 points, 10 rebounds, and five of Philadelphia’s eight blocks in the game. While he has been ill or infirm, or has just straight up played poorly, besides that one game, Embiid has all the tools to go off once more. Marc Gasol has kept him in check for most of the series, bringing him well below his season averages of 27.5 PPG and 13.6 RPG to 17 PPG and 8.3 RPG on 37% FG. History shows Embiid has never played better than average in the Scotiabank Arena — but all it takes is one game for all that to be erased. Philadelphia know they are entering a tough environment and situations like this are where reputations are built. It’s The Little Things Game 7’s are gruelling, slow-paced, every possession matters basketball. That means giving the opponent multiple chances is a critical mistake. Second chance points and offensive rebounds have given Philadelphia’s half court offense a chance in this series and limiting those possessions to one and done should give Toronto the advantage. Nick Nurse has made some adjustments since the Game 3 drumming in Philadelphia, most notably by going big with Ibaka and Gasol playing the 4 and 5. He’s also cut into the time of the bench, giving Fred VanVleet and Norm Powell much shorter leashes, while increasing the minutes of Serge Ibaka. In a game where every possession counts, having multiple poor possessions from the second unit can end the season early. For example, in Game 6 Brett Brown played Boban Marjanovic six minutes and he finished with a -18 — with the Raptors mounting huge runs each time. Toronto cannot afford a mistake like that, so we can expect the starters to play big time minutes.<doc-sep>The Toronto Raptors are headed to the Eastern Conference Finals for the second time in franchise history. Kawhi Leonard reacts to his game-winner over the 76ers in Game 7 The Toronto Raptors are headed to the Eastern Conference Finals. Kawhi Leonard scores 41 points including the buzzer-beating game-winner as the Raptors earn a 92-90 win over the 76ers. If you missed any of the action, check below for highlights and more from this decisive Game 7, we have you covered below. Final: Raptors 92, Sixers 90 (Toronto wins 4-3) - KAWHI WINS IT Kawhi Leonard hits a game-winner as time expires to send the Raptors to the Eastern Conference Finals. - Kawhi Leonard goes 1-for-2 from the line and Jimmy Butler goes the length of the court to tie it up. It's 90-90 with 4.2 seconds remaining. - Joel Embiid knocks down two free throws to cut the deficit to one. It's 89-88 Raptors with 10.8 seconds remaining as Kawhi Leonard is fouled. - The Raptors fail to score and the Sixers come up with the defensive rebound. Toronto leads 89-86 with 24.1 seconds remaining. Philadelphia calls for time and is set to advance the ball for the inbound. - Here's the situation: Toronto has the ball and the lead. It's 89-86 with 33.3 seconds remaining and eight seconds on the shot clock. Timeout Raptors. - Toronto is playing excellent defence down the stretch. A steal from Kyle Lowry as the shot clock winds down leads to a Pascal Siakam layup in transition. Raptors lead 89-85 with 1:14 remaining. Timeout Sixers. - Kawhi. Leonard. Toronto's All-Star knocks down a long two to give the team a two-point lead with 1:41 left. It's 87-85 as Game 7 comes down to the wire. - JJ Redick knocks down a mid-range jumper and is fouled by Serge Ibaka in the process. He sinks the free throw to tie things up. Philadelphia gets a stop on the ensuing possession and calls for time. It's 85-85 with 3:13 remaining in regulation. - Timeout on the floor. There's 3:53 remaining in regulation and the Raptors hold on to an 85-82 lead. Kawhi Leonard has scored the last eight points for Toronto and is up to 36 points in the game to go along with eight rebounds, three assists and three steals. Serge Ibaka (17 points) and Kyle Lowry (10 points) are the only other two Raptors in double figures. Joel Embiid leads Philadelphia with 19 points while every other starter has at least 13 points. The Sixers bench has scored just eight points. - Kawhi Leonard converts an and-one to give the Raptors a five-point lead but Jimmy Butler responds with two free throws after a drive. 85-82 Raptors with under four minutes to play. - These teams are going back-and-forth! Kawhi Leonard sticks a mid-range jumper to give Toronto a two-point lead. It's 82-80 with under five minutes to play. - This one's got the makings of a game that will go down to the wire. 7:46 remains in regulation and Toronto leads 75-73. Serge Ibaka is up to 17 points (on 6-for-8 shooting) in the game while Kawhi Leonard has a game-high 28 points. Jimmy Butler is warming up as he's hit a few tough buckets in the fourth to bring his total to 11 points in the game. End of Third Quarter: Raptors 67, 76ers 64 - Toronto ends the quarter with a response of its own! After the Sixers led by as many as seven points with its run, the Raptors close the quarter with a number of gutsy plays to take a three-point lead into the final frame. Kawhi Leonard led the way with 11 points in the third quarter and he now has a game-high 26 to go along with seven rebounds and two assists. Serge Ibaka has come up big off the bench and is the only other Raptor in double figures with 14 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists. Philadelphia is paced by 14 points from both Joel Embiid and JJ Redick while Tobias Harris has added 13 points. - Philadelphia has responded with an 11-0 run of its own to regain the lead. Timeout Toronto as it now trails 52-50 with 7:06 remaining in the third. - The Raptors open the half on a quick 6-1 run to get out to a nine-point lead and force the Sixers to call time. The score is 50-41 less than three minutes into the second half. Kawhi Leonard is now up to 19 points on the game with two buckets in the third and Marc Gasol has gotten on the board with an awkward shot from the lane. Halftime: Raptors 44, 76ers 40 - Take a look at some halftime stats https://images.daznservices.com/di/library/NBA_Global_CMS_image_storage/77/22/raptors-sixers-game-7-halftime-stats_1kzlkyg4fxexp1hdd9os5u4dk0.png?t=-1366803102&w=500 - Toronto heads into the half with a four-point lead thanks to an acrobatic finish from Kawhi Leonard, who leads all scorers with 15 points and a strong and-one finish from Kyle Lowry, who now has six points despite battling a number of hand ailments. Tobias Harris is 3-for-5 from the field and leads the Sixers with 10 points. Joel Embiid has seven points on 2-for-10 shooting while Ben Simmons has eight points, four rebounds and two assists. - Kyle Lowry sinks a corner trey to get on the board and tie things up at 39 with 2:37 left in the second quarter. Serge Ibaka is up to eight points in the game as he's knocked down both of his 3-point attempts. Tobias Harris has a team-high nine points for the Sixers, who have begun to get their offence going. - A layup from James Ennis III gives Philadelphia its first lead since the midpoint of the first quarter. Timeout Toronto as it trails 34-33 with 4:26 remaining in the half. Ben Simmons leads the Sixers with eight points while Ennis has scored five points in four minutes off the bench. Kawhi Leonard seems to be stuck on 13 points for the time being but Pascal Siakam is up to nine points and seven rebounds in the game. - It is being reported that Kyle Lowry has sustained a sprained left thumb. He has returned to the bench with his thumb taped and is available to return to the game. - The Raptors lead 31-25 with 6:49 remaining in the first half. Timeout on the floor. Kawhi Leonard has been all over the place and he leads all scorers with 13 points in addition to two steals in the game. Pascal Siakam is right behind Leonard with seven points to go along with a game-high six rebounds. For the Sixers, Ben Simmons and JJ Redick lead the way with six points apiece while All-Star centre Joel Embiid has scored just four points on 2-for-9 shooting. - Kyle Lowry has suffered an apparent injury to his left hand and has made his way to the Raptors locker room. More updates to come on his status. End of First Quarter: Raptors 18, 76ers 13 - One quarter is in the books and the Raptors hold a five-point lead. Toronto is shooting just 5-for-24 (20.8%) from the field and is led by eight points from Kawhi Leonard. At 5-for-19 (26.3%), Philadelphia isn't much better as it is led by three points from JJ Redick. Five other players have scored two points apiece. The Raptors have capitalized on the Sixers five turnovers, converting them to eight points. - A dunk from Danny Green in transition makes it an 8-0 run for the Raptors, who now lead 14-7. Timeout Sixers with 3:56 remaining in the first. Kawhi Leonard leads all scorers with six points while Fred VanVleet has scored four points from the charity stripe off the bench. Philadelphia is shooting just 15.4% from the field while Toronto is shooting 29.4%. - We've reached our first break in the action and both teams have struggled to get going offensively. Toronto leads 6-3 with 6:40 remaining in the first frame. Kawhi Leonard has four points for the Raptors, who are shooting 3-for-13 (23.1%) from the field. JJ Redick sank a triple for the Sixers, who are shooting 1-for-11 (9.1%) from the field.<doc-sep>
Closeout games are fun for no other reason than the lack of pulled punches. Brett Brown, five games into the series, should have a better idea about what he wants to do with his roster. Does he move away from Greg Monroe at back-up centre? Is Jimmy Butler able to take on a bigger offensive role? Butler shot 22 times in their Game 2 win, but took 16 shots in their recent Game 5 loss. The same type of questions exist for Nick Nurse and the Raptors. Will Serge Ibaka continue to play heavy minutes at power forward with Pascal Siakam returning to health? Who does Kawhi Leonard defend? How many minutes do Fred VanVleet and Norman Powell play? The Raptors are 5-4 in closeout games since their playoff run started in 2014. Not a bad record, but only now do they have Kawhi. In 18 closeout games during his career, Leonard has averaged 15.8 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.8 steals per game on 46 percent shooting from the field. Stats that don’t exactly jump off the page, and yet: he’s had five steals on two different occasions. The Raptors have two chances now to reach the Eastern Conference Finals. A pretty good bargain. Here are your details for tonight’s game. Where to Watch: TSN, 8:00 PM EST Lineups: Toronto - Kyle Lowry, Danny Green, Kawhi Leonard, Pascal Siakam, Marc Gasol Philadelphia - Ben Simmons, JJ Redick, Jimmy Butler, Tobias Harris, Joel Embiid Injuries Toronto - OG Anunoby (out — appendectomy), Chris Boucher (out — questionable) Philadelphia - none ******** Mentality The Philadelphia 76ers are on the brink of elimination. These games present a different challenge for every team. Some teams, like the Boston Celtics last night, may decide to accept defeat and put a messy campaign behind them. Some teams facing elimination, however, elevate their play. LeBron James and his teams are a good historical example. He is 14-9 in elimination games for his career. So what should the Raptors expect from the Sixers tonight? Joel Embiid isn’t the best player in the world (like LeBron James was at the time) but he is pretty darn good. If his mindset and physical health are in order, who knows what effect he will have on the game. The 76ers have experience in elimination games too, playing the Celtics down three-games to none in the second round last season. They ended up winning that game by 11 points, and Embiid was a big factor. His raw production wasn’t especially great (he had 15 points and 12 rebounds in 35 minutes), but he was a +22. Philadelphia will need superior production from their superstar to win tonight. Kawhi Leonard Road Performance The last time the Raptors were in Wells Fargo Center, Kawhi Leonard scored 39 points on 13-of-20 shooting. He was left to create most of the team’s offense late in the game, as shown by his 41 percent usage rate during the fourth quarter. It was a gruelling game, but the Raptors needed his scoring output. Good shots — especially from deep — are harder to come by in road games. Over the course of the playoffs, the Raptors have averaged fewer three-point attempts on the road than at home. Against Orlando in the first round, the Raptors averaged 28 three-point attempts per game on the road, to 35 and a half three-point attempts per game at home. It’s the same story for the Raptors heading into Philadelphia for Game 6. This series, the Raptors have averaged 29 three-point attempts per game on the road, to 34 and a half three-point attempts per game at home. Defensive Intensity The Raptors will need to dig deeper in Game 6. The one letup the Raptors can control is their defensive intensity coming out of halftime. They were slow bringing it in Game 5. Philadelphia got out to a 10-2 run before Nick Nurse called a timeout to re-establish the mindset. That sharp focus will be critical for the Raptors. They own the best defensive rating of any team in the playoffs, but if they were to have an Achilles heal, it would be their defense on the road. In the regular season, the Raptors were a slightly worse defensive team on the road — bleeding 1.1 more points per 100 possessions than at home. In the playoffs? Below-grade once again. The Raptors worst two defensive ratings versus Philadelphia came in road games.