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BOSTON - Depending on whom you ask, it was only a matter of time before the suddenly scorching Toronto Raptors experienced a setback, even a negligible one. Conditioned to be skeptical following years of false hope, the teams loyal albeit exasperated fan base - or at least a segment of it - has been weary of the dreaded letdown game. "Its the first stinker weve had," coach Dwane Casey said after his much-improved team was stunned by the lowly Celtics, falling 88-83 in Boston, a city in which the Raptors have gone winless over the last six years. It was bound to happen eventually. The Raptors had been remarkably consistent in potential trap games, winning 10 of their last 11 contests against teams with losing records. Still, no one truly believed they would run the table with more than half the season left to be played, no one outside the locker room that is. "No," Kyle Lowry said straight-faced when asked if he saw it coming. "We dont expect to have any letdowns." Its just one game, one night, one of 82. In and of itself, the loss – however disappointing – shouldnt be a cause for concern. Even the best of the best get caught taking their foot off the gas but that doesnt provide solace to a team thats learning to demand more of themselves. "They out-worked us tonight, which is rare for us," Lowry said, his team giving up 19 offensive boards to the Celtics, who had lost nine straight coming into the contest. "It sucks but weve got to learn from this. Everyones pissed off right now, guys are mad and we should be." The Raptors came out flat and could never quite find the groove theyve been playing with for the better part of the last month. It was their most disheartening loss since a Dec. 18 overtime defeat at home to Charlotte and their worst effort since the Spurs ran them out of their own building eight days before that. Leading the division, Toronto owned the best record in the Eastern Conference since its early-December trade. On the other end of the spectrum, the Celtics were quickly sinking to the bottom of the Atlantic, jettisoning their assists-leader to the West Coast hours before hosting the red-hot Raptors on Wednesday. Missing Jordan Crawford, who was traded to Golden State earlier in the afternoon, and Rajon Rondo - expected to return from injury on Friday - the Celtics caught Toronto napping. The Raptors should, but probably wouldnt, appreciate the irony. Undermanned just hours after the Rudy Gay deal was consummated, the Raptors upset the heavily favoured Lakers in Los Angeles just over a month ago. Sometimes youre the windshield, on Wednesday they were the bug. "It started on the boards," Casey said, as the Raptors were out-rebounded 20-7 in the third quarter, when the game began to slip away. "I was disappointed in our rebounding, we just got whipped in every way in the paint." Forward Jared Sullinger grabbed eight of his 20 boards in the third, en route to a career performance. The Celtics sophomore became the first player in the franchises rich history to record at least 25 points, 20 rebounds and four assists in a game since Larry Bird accomplished that feat in 1987. Needless to say, Casey was not thrilled. "None of our bigs did a mans job on the boards tonight (and) thats the ball game," he said. "Anytime you give up that many (second-chance) points, you can point to any big." Jonas Valanciunas had a rough night on both ends of the floor, shooting just 1-of-7 in 23 minutes of action. Amir Johnson was held under 26 minutes, having to leave the game early in the third after tweaking his left ankle. "They played harder than us," Johnson admitted. "We definitely should have come out and won this game." Johnson said the injury did not occur on a specific play, instead it just started to feel sore, similar to what he felt before undergoing surgery on the same ankle in 2011. "It was weird," said Johnson, who was able to return to the game in the fourth quarter after getting treatment in the locker room. "Once I got the tape on it, it felt fine, but it was weird." Johnsons brief absence was costly, Patrick Patterson who had been playing at a high level was underwhelming and Tyler Hansbrough - sitting out his seventh straight, also with a sprained left ankle - was missed. For the first time in over a month Steve Novak was asked to log meaningful minutes as Toronto played catch-up in the fourth. Although the Raptors knocked down 11 threes on 24 attempts from beyond the arch - their fourth straight game with 11 or more treys - both teams shot under 40 per cent from the field. While Boston connected on 26 of their 36 attempts from the line, the Raptors missed a devastating 13 free throws (on 25 attempts), including several down the stretch. Down by as many as 18 in the second half, the Raptors managed to fight back and cut their deficit to three with under a minute remaining. Missed free throws and poor late-game execution was their undoing. "We have to use this as a reminder," said DeMar DeRozan, who led the Raptors with 23 points. "It doesnt matter who we are playing. If its a team we are better than, whatever, teams are still going to go out there and play hard. Boston didnt give up at all. They kept the pressure going on us. They played hard tonight." Layvin Kurzawa Jersey . Although taking two of three from the Baltimore Orioles wasnt nearly as uplifting as winning the World Series, it still felt pretty darn good. Felix Doubront and four relievers combined kept Baltimores potent lineup in check, and David Ortiz had three of Bostons 12 hits off Wei-Yin Chen in a 4-3 victory Thursday night. Presnel Kimpembe Paris Saint-Germain Jersey . The Miami Heat star tops the leagues global list of top-selling jerseys for the 2012-13 season, edging Derrick Rose of the Chicago Bulls, Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers, Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder and James Heat teammate Dwyane Wade for the No. http://www.psgsoccershop.com/c-11-edinson-cavani-paris-saint-germain-fc-jersey.aspx . The Raptors second-year forward has been one of the primary beneficiaries of the early-season trade, breaking out and becoming a vital part of his teams success on both ends of the floor. Around the league, teams are starting to take notice and feature Ross more predominately in their pre-game scouting reports but its not just the opposition that hes impressing. Dani Alves Paris Saint-Germain Jersey . The 27-year-old forward has informed the Leafs that he will be unable to play in Monday nights home game against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Thomas Meunier Paris Saint-Germain Jersey .C. -- Duke sophomore Rodney Hood is entering the NBA draft. INDIANAPOLIS -- As one of the NBAs elite teams, the Indiana Pacers have a target on their backs. The Phoenix Suns came out firing in the first half and held the Pacers off in the second to hand Indiana just its second home loss of the season. "This year theyre not the underdogs anymore," Suns forward Channing Frye said. "Teams come out and give it their best shot. For them to expect us to come in and lay down, for any team to lay down, its not going to happen." Goran Dragic had 28 points and seven assists to lead Phoenix to the 102-94 win over the Pacers on Thursday night. Gerald Green and Marcus Morris scored 16 points apiece to help the Suns win their fourth straight game. Markieff Morris, who finished with 15 points, hit a 3-pointer with 2:58 remaining to give the Suns a 98-92 lead and Dragic dunked to give the Suns a 100-94 lead with 44 seconds left to put the game out of reach. The Suns (28-18) seemed to have the game put away by halftime. Dragic scored 21 of the Suns 66 points in the first half -- the most given up by the Pacers (35-10) in a half this season since the Suns scored 62 on Indiana a week ago in a 124-100 win. "We are at our best when we start the game well," Dragic said. "We played an up-tempo game, so I think they were a little bit tired." The Pacers rallied after trailing 66-49 at the break, but never retook the lead. Roy Hibbert had 26 points and David West added 18 for the Pacers, who have lost three of five games. Indiana went on an 8-2 run early in the second half with shots by David West, Paul George, Lance Stephenson and George Hill to get within 70-53. Later, George was fouled on a layup and converted the 3-point play to make it 71-61 with 7:01 left in the third. Miles Plumlee missed a dunk and Hibbert scored on a putback to get Indiana within eight. Frye answered with a basket and then HHibbert scored Indianas next six points to get the Pacers within 73-69.dddddddddddd "We came out, got ourselves back in it in the second half with defence, but couldnt get up over the hump," Hibbert said. "They outplayed us." The Pacers got within a point when Hill hit two free throws to make it 91-90 with 4:20 remaining, but Green extended the lead with two free throws. Hill made a layup before Green hit a jumper to put the Suns ahead 95-92 and Markieff Morris 3-pointer to give the Suns a five-point lead. "In the end, that third quarter cost us a little bit," Dragic said. "They came really strong. They made some open shots and that made it a little bit of a different game." It was much different from the way Phoenix played in the first half. They took a lead right away in the first quarter. They went on a 9-0 run early in the game when Dragic tied the game on a layup and later hit a jumper to give the Suns a 6-8 lead. Then Green hit a 3-pointer and another basket to make it 13-6 with 6:24 left in the first quarter. The Suns went on a 15-2 run to close out the first quarter with a 36-19 lead. Stephenson, who left the game in the first quarter after getting hit in the right eye, scored 12 second-quarter points. West added 10, but the Pacers were never able to put together a run or cut into the deficit. Even when George hit a jumper falling out of bounds that went over the corner of the backboard and through the hoop, it didnt matter. Dragic hit a 3-pointer to take back the lead and to give the Suns a 62-45 lead. NOTES: In four halves against the Pacers this season, the Suns have scored 62 points or more in three of them. . Stephenson recorded his fourth triple-double with 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists. . Hibbert and George become the first Pacers teammates to earn All-Star honours in the same season since Jermaine ONeal and Ron Artest in 2004. 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