Raptors gain 6th straight; Hawks absorb 6th in row

TORONTO – A balanced attack was the difference in a matchup of teams heading in opposite directions.

DeMar DeRozan had 21 points, and Kyle Lowry and Patrick Patterson each added 17 in the Toronto Raptors’ 128-84 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday night.

It was Toronto’s sixth straight win, and Atlanta’s sixth loss in a row.

“Everybody’s an elite scorer here,” said Raptors forward Terrence Ross, who had 15 points, including three 3s, as Toronto (14-6) took the lead for good midway through the first quarter. “Tonight was just one of those nights everybody had it going.”

In Philadelphia, Isaiah Thomas scored 12 straight Celtics points late in the fourth quarter and tied his season high with 37 points to lead Boston to a 107-106 victory over the short-handed Philadelphia 76ers.

Avery Bradley added 20 points for Boston, which won its ninth straight game against the 76ers.

“I just love the fourth quarter,” Thomas said. “Some guys get a little tight, a little timid. I embrace it. I want to be great. I want to be somebody my teammates can call on when the game is close.”

The Celtics certainly know they can go to Thomas, who at 5-foot-9 can be described as a little big man. He entered ninth in the NBA in scoring (25.7 ppg) and now has five games of 30 or more points.

In other results, Milwaukee trounced Brooklyn, 112-103; Minnesota turned back Charlotte, 125-120; Dallas crushed Chicago, 107-82; Utah thumped Denver, 105-98; Portland subdued Miami, 99-92; Golden State thrashed Phoenix, 138-109; and the Memphis Grizzlies edged the Los Angeles Lakers, 103-100.

Back in Toronto, Lowry also had eight assists and eight rebounds to help Toronto tie Cleveland for the Eastern Conference lead. The NBA champion Cavaliers will be in Toronto on Monday night in an Eastern Conference Finals rematch.

Dennis Schroder had 15 points and six assists for the Hawks (10-11), Dwight Howard had 10 points and 17 rebounds, and Tim Hardaway Jr. added 15 points. The Hawks are 1-9 in their last 10 games.

“There’s not a lot to say,” Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer said. “They thoroughly outplayed us, credit to them. That’s it.”

The Raptors were up by 15 at the half and led 86-70 after three quarters before turning it into a laugher early in the fourth quarter. Both teams, playing on back-to-back nights, turned the final minutes into a game for the reserves.

The 44-point win was the largest margin of victory in franchise history.

“I thought the first six, seven, eight, nine minutes of the third quarter was kind of back and forth competitive and then it got away from us,” said Budenholzer. “The fourth quarter is the fourth quarter.”

On the night, Toronto hit 58 percent from the field, including 13 for 24, or 54 percent, from 3.

“Like I always say, it’s cliché, but it’s a make or miss league,” said Toronto head coach Dwane Casey. “Guys are making shots, making their shots. The ball’s finding energy moving.

“They are trying to double team Kyle (Lowry) and DeMar (DeRozan) and they’re finding people and the ball is finding the right person.”

The Hawks shot 40 percent from the field, including 7 for 28, or 25 percent, from 3.

“We just have to stop getting frustrated with each other,” said Howard. “I think we got a little frustrated at times on the floor and it showed.

“I think we need to do a little better job holding our composure and understand that it won’t be like this the whole season.”