Der X Cup » The Raptors owned the NBAs seventh-best

PHOENIX - Going into Fridays game the Raptors had one noticeable advantage over the surprisingly competitive Suns - their size. The Raptors owned the NBAs seventh-best rebounding rate and ranked fourth on the offensive glass while the Suns, a team that starts two point guards and plays mostly outside of the paint, have struggled on the boards despite their hot start to the season. For Toronto, the game plan was simple. "Try to make them pay for playing small," Dwane Casey emphasized after morning shoot around. It turned out to be easier said than done. "Thats an area that was a strength of ours, rebounding, but now its one of our weaknesses," Casey said after his team was out-rebounded 53-36, including an 18-11 disparity on the offensive boards, in a 106-97 loss, the Raptors fifth straight. Caseys club misjudged this Suns team like others have done early in the season. As Toronto found out, their stature can be misleading. Their toughness set the tone and the Raptors, for all of the mismatches they planned to exploit, were in over their heads once again. "Its about toughness, its about attention to detail, its about being locked in and knowing your guy is coming in behind you," Casey exclaimed. "When you give them 18 more bullets, you cant win in this league." The Raptors played frustrated, which didnt necessarily translate to that desperate style of play that Caseys been looking for. Markieff Morris jawed at Jonas Valanciunas, baiting him into a double technical, Kyle Lowry pouted and complained until he was whistled for a tech of his own and former Raptors castoff PJ Tucker got under the skin of DeMar DeRozan and Rudy Gay all night. The Suns did a lot of talking, but they backed it all up. Morris missed just three of his 14 attempts recording a double-double of 25 points and 11 rebounds and Tucker scored 18 to go along with a career-best 13 boards. "This team is a very physical team," Casey said of the Suns. "Their wing players are very physical. They are tough match-ups and you have to meet that physicality with physicality and we didnt do it on the boards." With a roster designed to be bad while incoming visionary Ryan McDonough collects picks and cap space, rookie head coach Jeff Hornacek has the Suns playing hard despite being outmatched in the talent department most every night - not unlike the team that overachieved in Caseys first year with the Raptors. On the opposite end of the spectrum, nothing is going right for the Raptors. The team still sits dead last in the league in assists (they recorded just 15 on Friday) and their primary shot-takers cant seem to knock down shots. Gay and DeRozan combined to shoot 11-for-30 on a night in which both were oddly ineffective and often unnoticeable. Efficiency be damned on some nights, but generally one or the other - recently its been DeRozan more often than not - manages to put points on the board. It was not the case on Friday. Most concerning for Gay continues to be his missed shots around the rim, an ongoing trend this season. Gay was just two-for-seven in the painted area against the Suns and his percentages around the bucket have dropped significantly compared to his career norm. "Its tough because hes getting hit, but he has to hit first," Casey said of Gays struggles in the paint. "Hes not getting the benefit of the calls, but some of them are not fouls. He has to go in there and hit first and think about dunking the ball rather than finessing." Johnson fills in for injured Hansbrough The Raptors certainly missed the toughness of Tyler Hansbrough, who exited the game just two and a half minutes in after taking an inadvertent elbow from Channing Frye and spraining his left shoulder. He did not return and is considered day-to-day. In his place, Amir Johnson, who lost his starting gig to Hansbrough last week, stepped up and chipped in a season-best 22 points in 33 minutes off the bench. It was the second-straight game in which Johnson resembled his old self, a positive sign for this team moving forward, especially if Hansbrough is forced to miss time. Looking ahead, or not looking ahead Prior to the game, Casey insisted he and his team would not be distracted by a boisterous announcement made by Kobe Bryant and the Lakers earlier in the day. Bryant, who has been recovering from his Achilles injury, will make his season debut in Los Angeles against the Raptors on Sunday. "I heard that," Casey admitted. "But I know Im not [looking ahead] and I havent heard our guys mention anything about it as far as looking ahead to Sunday." "We have no right to look ahead," he exclaimed before the loss. "Weve got to be the hungry team, weve got to be the desperate team tonight." Ozzie Smith Jersey . "Last year we were in a ton of situations, late-game situations we couldnt pull out. Wed kind of fold under the pressure, get frustrated or let a big shot frustrate us," guard DeMar DeRozan said. Tim McCarver Jersey . -- The Chicago Bears have agreed to a one-year contract with cornerback Kelvin Hayden. http://www.cardinalsrookiestore.com/Cardinals-Jason-Motte-Kids-Jersey/ . Manager Alex Ferguson says the injury was sustained while the player tried to hit a volley toward the end of training on Tuesday. Stan Musial Jersey .J. -- All those records, all for naught. Red Schoendienst Jersey . - Veteran Kings defenceman Robyn Regehr, sidelined since Game 1 of the Anaheim series, says hes close to returning.Liverpool midfielder Philippe Coutinho is a doubt for Saturdays trip to Southampton after undergoing a scan on Thursday. Sky sources understand the midfielder has had a precautionary scan on a minor hamstring injury after feeling tightness in the muscle. The 24-year-old, who has been in sensational form for the Reds this season, recently returned from international duty with Brazil. Coutinho featured heavily as Brazil beat Argentina and Peru in World Cup qualifiers Coutinho has become an integral part of the Brazilian national side under boss Tite and featured heavily over the recent international break, as the five-time World Cup winners claimed qualifying victories over Argentina and Peru. Liverpool flew their midfielder back to England immediately after Wednesdays match in Lima with this weekends trip to St Marys in mind. The 24-year-old returned home to England alongside international team-mate Roberto Firmino Coutinho and Brazil team-mate Roberto Firmino reported back to Liverpools Melwood base on Thursday, but neither took part in Jurgen Klopps training session.Instead, Coutinho visited a local private hospital to have his hamstring problem assessed ahead of this weekends fixture, say Sky sources. Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp says the club must create an atmosphere in which none of their star players want to leave Klopp will be hoping the midfielder is passed fit for the Southampton game, after seeing Adam Lallana limp out of Englands 2-2 draw with Spain on Tuesday night.ddddddddddddThe 28-year-old, who has also impressed for the Premier League leaders at the start of the campaign, is set to miss out against his former club after aggravating a pre-existing groin problem.Upgrade to Sky Sports now to watch Man Utd v Arsenal this Saturday and get the first six months half price! 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