Raptors beat Bobcats by 21
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Alan Anderson sank four 3-pointers en route to a game-high 16 points as the Toronto Raptors rolled over the Charlotte Bobcats, 99-78, at Air Canada Centre.
Jose Calderon followed with 15 points and six assists, while Amir Johnson and Ed Davis contributed 13 and 12 points, respectively, for Toronto, which has won two straight and 10 of its last 13 overall.
Michael Kidd-Gilchrest, Kemba Walker and Ben Gordon scored 12 points apiece to pace the Bobcats, who have dropped two straight and three of their last four.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"They play solid basketball," Bobcats coach Mike Dunlap said about Toronto. "They share the ball freely and they were able to find the paint. That's a tremendous coach over there and he stresses defense."
Toronto opened the game with a 10-2 run to take a lead they would not lose as the Bobcats struggled offensively, connecting on just one of their first eight shots from the floor.
A Kidd-Gilchrist layup followed by a Hakim Warrick dunk snapped the drought before Calderon's 3-pointer sparked a streak of nine straight points by the Raptors to put them ahead, 19-6.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Charlotte would get no closer than nine points from there and trailed, 29-16, heading into the second quarter, where Toronto's lead stretched as high as 41-20 four minutes into the frame on an Anderson triple.
The Raptors maintained at least a 14-point edge from there and went into the break holding a 53-39 advantage.
Charlotte was held to just 39.5 percent (15-for-38) shooting in the first half, while Toronto shot 48.8 percent (21-for-43) from the floor and converted eight Bobcat turnovers into 10 points.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Charlotte never threatened in the second half, getting no closer than 14 points throughout the third quarter and 17 points in the fourth.
"The hardest thing to do in this league is to play with a lead," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. "You have to move the ball every play and keep playing with the same effort on every play."
Game Notes
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Johnson and Davis each had eight rebounds ... Toronto improved to 3-2 on a six-game homestand ... The Bobcats fell to 4-12 on the road this season ... Charlotte shot 37.3 percent in the game and turned the ball over 13 times, resulting in 17 Toronto points.