The Toronto Raptors (41 - 27) defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves (14 - 53) 105 - 100 on Wednesday at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto. By securing this victory, the Raptors remained within two games of the Cleveland Cavaliers, who sit in the second projected playoff seed in the Eastern Conference standings. The Cavaliers took down the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday as well, so the Raptors avoided dropping another game back with a loss. The Timberwolves have now tied the New York Knicks for the worst record in the league, so they'll battle it out to see who will give themselves the best chance of landing the number one overall pick in this year's draft from here on out. DeMar DeRozan really struggled with his shot in this game, going just 4 - of - 14 from the field. He made up for it at the free throw line though, as he forced his way into 12 attempts, while converting on all 12 of those attempts to push his scoring total to a team - high of 21 points. DeRozan continues to score at a very high rate, considering he's surpassed the 20 - point mark in eight of his last nine games. Over his last 10 games, he's now averaging 22 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists. Jonas Valanciunas put in a good effort as well, notching a double - double with 15 points (7 - 9 FG, 1 - 2 FT) and 15 rebounds in just 23 minutes. It was his second double - double in a row, as he's combined for 29 points and 27 rebounds over his last two games. Terrence Ross was dialed in with his shot as well. He went 6 - for - 9 from the field and 3 - for - 5 from beyond the arc to score 15 points. Unfortunately for the Raptors, Kyle Lowry had to leave the game during the third quarter with what looked like a lower back injury and was not able to return. While they were unable to pull off the win, Kevin Martin had himself a game. He went 14 - for - 28 from the floor and 5 - for - 9 from the three - point line to score a game - high of 37 points, while also adding seven rebounds. He's picked up his scoring of late with so many injuries affecting this team, as he's averaging 18 points while shooting 45 percent from the field during his last four games. Andrew Wiggins also did his best to keep his team close. He went 6 - for - 9 from the field and 3 - for - 4 from the free throw line to score 15 points. After shooting 40 percent or lower in each of his last three games, it was good to see the forward get back on track Wednesday. Coming off the bench, Chase Budinger matched a season - high of 19 points (9 - 18 FG, 1 - 5 3Pt, 0 - 1 FT), to go along with eight rebounds. It was his second solid showing in a row, after scoring 18 points Monday. Ricky Rubio returned after missing two games, but had just two points (1 - 4 FG, 0 - 1 3Pt) and eight assists in 30 minutes. The Raptors' next game will be on the road against the Chicago Bulls on Friday, while the Timberwolves will travel to New York to play the Knicks on Thursday.
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 "PlayerStat(G,'Kevin Martin') has 9 Assists ,has 5 3-pointers attempted ,has 28 3-pointers made ,has 14 Field goals attempted ,has 4 Field goals made ,has 4 Free throws attempted ,has 37 Free throws made ,has 7 Minutes played ."
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 "PlayerStat(G,'Chase Budinger') has 5 Assists ,has 1 3-pointers attempted ,has 18 3-pointers made ,has 9 Field goals attempted ,has 1 Field goals made ,has 0 Free throws attempted ,has 19 Free throws made ,has 8 Minutes played ."
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 "PlayerStat(G,'Jonas Valanciunas') has 9 Assists ,has 7 3-pointers attempted ,has 2 3-pointers made ,has 1 Field goals attempted ,has 15 Field goals made ,has 15 Free throws attempted ,has 2 Free throws made ."
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