Who's Playing
Matchup: Toronto Raptors at Cleveland Cavaliers
Records: Raptors (33-14), Cavaliers (13-35)
Where to Watch
Date: Jan. 30, 2020
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
TV: SN1/E/O/W/P (Canada), Fox Sports Ohio or NBA League Pass (USA)
Location: Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, Cleveland, OH
Game Preview
The Raptors are coming off of an action-packed win over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday that was much more than your typical regular season contest.
A game that started with an emotional tribute to Kobe Bryant carried into a more uplifting tribute to Raptors legend Vince Carter. On the same evening, current Raptors legend Kyle Lowry made another mark on the franchise's history, passing Jose Calderon as Toronto's all-time leader in assists.
Assist number 3771 for @Klow7 pic.twitter.com/BYa25pz0Fc
— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) January 29, 2020
Lowry's near-triple-double of 12 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds along with a 24-point performance from All-Star forward Pascal Siakam and a big double-double (24 points, 10 rebounds) off the bench from Serge Ibaka helped lead the Raptors to their eighth-straight win.
MORE: Takeaways from Raptors win over Hawks | Is Carter right in declaring Lowry the greatest Raptor of all-time?
Against the Cavaliers, Toronto will chase its ninth-consecutive win, which would tie it with the Milwaukee Bucks for the longest current win streak in the league. This successful stretch of games has shot the Raptors from fourth place to second place in the Eastern Conference, and they're just four-consecutive wins shy of breaking the longest win streak in franchise history.
Toronto has had no problems handling Cleveland so far this season, winning each of its first two matchups by 20 points. This is the third and final meeting against the Cavaliers, and the Raptors will need to prevail without starting centre Marc Gasol, who re-aggravated his left hamstring in Tuesday's win.
Can the Raptors keep this win streak rolling?
Injury Report
Raptors
- Marc Gasol (hamstring) – Out
- Dewan Hernandez (ankle) – Out
- Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (ankle) – Out
- Patrick McCaw (nose) – Questionable
Cavaliers
- Brandon Knight (knee) – Out
- Dylan Windler (leg) – Out
- Ante Zizic (illness) – Out
Game Notes
- In Tuesday's win over the Hawks, Kyle Lowry passed Jose Calderon as the Raptors franchise leader in assists (3,772). Lowry was already the franchise leader in 3-point field goals and steals.
- The only active NBA players who are their current franchise’s all-time leader in assists are Houston’s James Harden and Washington’s John Wall.
- With a win, the Raptors would sweep the season series against the Cavaliers for the first time since 2000-01.
- Toronto is averaging 122.4 points on 49.7% shooting from the field and 39.6% from 3 over their eight-game win streak.
- The Raptors have won seven-consecutive games on the road, tying their second-longest streak in franchise history.
- With last Friday's win over the New York Knicks, the Raptors have guaranteed a winning record for the month of January. Toronto has finished with a winning record in each of the past 21 calendar months.
Last Time They Played
Date: Dec. 31, 2019
Score: Raptors 117, Cavaliers 97
Raptors: Kyle Lowry – 24 PTS (7-16 FG, 4-12 3PT, 6-6 FT), 8 AST
Cavaliers: Collin Sexton – 22 PTS (8-15 FG)
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