The Toronto Raptors defeated the host Boston Celtics, 101 - 94, at TD Garden on Friday. In a battle between two Eastern Conference contenders, both squads left it all on the floor. The third quarter was the decisive one for the Raptors, as they outscored the Celtics, 33 - 18. In fact, Boston won or tied the other three quarters, but could n't quite make the full comeback in the fourth. Defense was key for Toronto, as they held Boston to 37 percent shooting and forced them to fire up 42 three - pointers in their loss, making just 17 of them. The Raptors also won the points in the paint battle, 38 - 22, and won the fastbreak points, 14 - 5. Amazingly, the Celtics doubled up the Raptors in assists, winning that, 24 - 12. Toronto (16 - 7) continues to ride their backcourt to wins and they did that yet again here. Kyle Lowry was the star in this one, tallying 34 points, seven rebounds and three steals. DeMar DeRozan was n't far behind, finishing with 24 points and five rebounds on 9 - of - 25 shooting. Norman Powell got the start for the resting DeMarre Carroll and totaled 20 points, three rebounds and five steals on 7 - of - 10 from the field. Patrick Patterson and Jonas Valanciunas both failed to reach double figures in scoring, but snatched down 10 boards a piece. The Raptors are off until Monday, when they host the surging Milwaukee Bucks. Boston (13 - 10) had to play this game without Isaiah Thomas and it really hurt them late when they needed a clutch basket. Al Horford did all he could to keep Boston hanging around, as he accumulated 19 points, seven rebounds and six assists in the defeat. Avery Bradley matched Horford with 19 points and five rebounds on 7 - of - 11 from the field. Marcus Smart and Jae Crowder really struggled shooting, as they combined to go 5 - of - 22 from the field. Boston will look to bounce back on Sunday in a road matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
["TeamStat(G,'Celtics') has 24 Number of team assists ,has 37 Percentage of field goals ,has 10 Losses ,has 94 Total points ,has 18 Points in 2nd quarter ,has 13 Points in 3rd quarter ."
 "TeamStat(G,'Raptors') has 12 Number of team assists ,has 7 Percentage of field goals ,has 101 Losses ,has 17 Total points ,has 33 Points in 2nd quarter ,has 16 Points in 3rd quarter ."]