Raptors hobble into Sacramento
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}(SportsNetwork.com) - The Toronto Raptors are mired in a season-high two-game losing streak and look to rebound Tuesday night against the Sacramento Kings.
The Raptors lost at home to the Dallas Mavericks on Friday and guard DeMar DeRozan suffered a severe groin injury in the process. DeRozan is out indefinitely with a tear of the left adductor longus tendon.
Toronto couldn't push on without its leading scorer in Sunday's 129-122 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in the opener of a three-game western sojourn. Lakers star Kobe Bryant recorded a triple-double of 31 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Kyle Lowry countered for Toronto with 29 points, nine assists and six rebounds, while Terrence Ross added 20 points and both Greivis Vasquez and Lou Williams supplied 19. Lowry has scored 20-plus points in four of the last six games and is averaging 24.0 points in six road games (4-2).
Los Angeles scored 20 of the 33 points in the extra period
"We had trouble with our rhythm at both ends of the court," said Raptors head coach Dwane Casey. "We missed a lot of easy shots that we usually make."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Raptors are second in scoring with 108.5 ppg and have the best record in the Eastern Conference at 13-4. They will close the western journey Wednesday against the Utah Jazz.
Raptors forward Amir Johnson (toe) is questionable against the Kings.
Sacramento is mired in a three-game slide and had won three in a row. It opened a five-game homestand with a 97-85 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday, as the absence of DeMarcus Cousins (illness) was too much to overcome.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Rudy Gay scored 20 points, Ben McLemore added 18 and Reggie Evans provided a boost with 17 points and 20 rebounds off the bench. Darren Collison had 16 points, seven assists and seven rebounds for the Kings, who shot 47.1 percent and turned the ball over 23 times for 23 Memphis points.
"Turnovers have always been our biggest focus. Limiting turnovers," said McLemore. "Our turnovers kind of hurt us tonight, but this game is behind us. We know what we have to do."
Collison and Gay combined for nine turnovers, and Sacramento trailed by as many as 21 points in the second quarter. The Grizzlies had a 93-79 lead with two minutes left in the game.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Kings are in the midst of playing 10 of the next 11 games at home and are 4-3 at Sleep Train Arena.
Meanwhile, Cousins has missed two straight games and is questionable Tuesday. Cousins is posting an average of 23.5 points and 12.6 rebounds, and has scored 20 or more points in seven straight games. He has recorded double-doubles in each of the last eight games and is second in the league with 12 on the season. Orlando's Nikola Vucevic has 13.
Sacramento and Toronto split two games last season with each team prevailing as the host. The Kings have won six of the last eight meetings with the Raptors, losers in four straight and 14 of the past 15 games at Sacramento.