On Thursday night, the Raptors 905 bested the Westchester Knicks in their home opener battle at Paramount Fine Foods Center. The very next night, the 905 got the better of the Knicks once again, in a thrilling fashion.
In Thursday night’s matchup, the 905 fed off the energy of the crowd and came out of the gates with a sense of urgency. Carrying a 20-10 lead after a Reggie Perry slam and the foul off of a Westchester turnover, the Knicks called a timeout and momentum swung their way afterwards. The Knicks ended the first quarter on their own 20-10 run taking a 36-32 lead. After going down 12 within the second quarter, the 905 fought back ultimately bringing their deficit down to 3 with a 62-59 halftime score. Middle man Reggie Perry scored 17 of his 21 points within the half.
The 905 came out aggressive on both ends of the court, getting to the hoop and forcing Westchester turnovers with sticky defense. The deficit was cut to 2 for a 93-91 Westchester lead entering the fourth. In the fourth the 905 built off of their strong momentum to end the third, continuing their defensive pressure and hitting their shots. Down the stretch the two teams traded baskets, with Knicks’ MJ Walker scoring 11 of his game high 29 points in the quarter, however a multitude of fourth quarter contributions saw the home team 905 come away with the 122-115 victory. Guard Saben Lee was the high scorer for the 905 with 25 points.
With revenge on their minds, the Knicks opened Friday night’s matchup on a 11-2 run after a slow start offensively for the 905. After trading runs in the second quarter, the Knicks locked in on defense to end the half with a 54-50 lead. The third quarter was tough offensively and defensively for the 905, as they allowed the Knicks to embark on 10-4 run to start the frame. Poor defense and rebounding led to the Knicks outscoring the 905 25-18 in the frame, carrying an 11 point 79-68 lead into the fourth.
The 905 hit a switch as the fourth quarter rolled around, trading baskets with the Knicks and clawing their way back into the game and eventually taking the lead. After a quiet first half offensively, Reggie Perry hit a key trey ball to break a 102 tie and put the 905 up 105-102. The two teams traded baskets and free throws down the stretch, and after a clutch steal by Saben Lee, the 905 guard was fouled with a chance to put the home team up 3 with 9 seconds to go. Two missed free throws by Lee left the door open for the Knicks, as James Akinjo was fouled by Lee, putting him on the line for 2 made free throws. With the 905 down 108-109, a timeout was called, and Reggie Perry hit the game winning turnaround fadeaway out of the timeout with 0.2 seconds left on the clock, propelling the 905 to escape with the 110-109 dub.
The 905 are in action again in a Tuesday morning road game against the Greensboro Swarm at 11am EST where they look to make it 3 wins in a row.
