Game ID: 22300744
Houston Rockets @ Toronto Raptors
Friday, February 9, 2024 at 7:30 PM ET
Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, ON
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
TOR 34 27 27 19 107HOU 20 29 22 33 104
HOU @ TOR ScoutingHOU @ TOR Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
TOR availability going into 2/02 · 2 days' restOUT Barrett missed 2 since 1/28, out tonight
OUT Quickley missed 3 since 1/26, returns tonight: 30 min (89% of 33)
OUT Poeltl missed 11 since 1/09, returns tonight: 20 min (77% of 26)
OUT Freeman-Liberty missed 2 since 1/28, out tonight
OUT Porter Jr. missed 15 since 1/01, out tonight
NEW Young 15 to 24 min over the last 5
TOR availability going into 2/04 · 1 day's restOUT Barrett missed 3 since 1/28, returns tonight: 43 min (130% of 34)
OUT Freeman-Liberty missed 3 since 1/28, out tonight
OUT Porter Jr. missed 16 since 1/01, out tonight
BACK Quickley back 2/02 after 3, 30 min since (89% of 33)
BACK Poeltl back 2/02 after 11, 20 min since (77% of 26)
NEW Young 15 to 26 min over the last 5
TOR availability going into 2/05 · back-to-backOUT Freeman-Liberty missed 4 since 1/28, out tonight
OUT Boucher missed 2 since 2/02, returns tonight: 12 min (85% of 14)
OUT Porter missed 2 since 2/02, out tonight
OUT Porter Jr. missed 17 since 1/01, out tonight
BACK Barrett back 2/04 after 3, 43 min since (130% of 34)
BACK Quickley back 2/02 after 3, 36 min since (108% of 33)
BACK Poeltl back 2/02 after 11, 27 min since (102% of 26)
NEW Young 15 to 24 min over the last 5
TOR availability going into 2/07 · 1 day's restOUT Freeman-Liberty missed 5 since 1/28, out tonight
OUT Porter missed 3 since 2/02, out tonight
OUT Porter Jr. missed 18 since 1/01, out tonight
BACK Barrett back 2/04 after 3, 43 min since (130% of 34)
BACK Quickley back 2/02 after 3, 32 min since (96% of 33)
BACK Poeltl back 2/02 after 11, 27 min since (103% of 26)
BACK Boucher back 2/05 after 2, 12 min since (85% of 14)
NEW Nwora 16 to 22 min over the last 4
NEW Young 15 to 22 min over the last 5
TOR availability going into 2/09 · 1 day's restOUT Freeman-Liberty missed 6 since 1/28, out tonight
OUT Porter missed 4 since 2/02, returns tonight: 11 min (79% of 14)
OUT Porter Jr. missed 19 since 1/01, not on tonight's roster
BACK Barrett back 2/04 after 3, 38 min since (115% of 34)
BACK Quickley back 2/02 after 3, 32 min since (95% of 33)
BACK Poeltl back 2/02 after 11, 29 min since (109% of 26)
BACK Boucher back 2/05 after 2, 12 min since (85% of 14)
NEW Young 15 to 21 min over the last 5
TOR availability going into 2/10 · back-to-backOUT Freeman-Liberty missed 7 since 1/28, out tonight
OUT Boucher missed 2 since 2/07, out tonight
OUT McDaniels missed 2 since 2/07, returns tonight: 3 min (28% of 11)
OUT Temple missed 2 since 2/07, returns tonight: 3 min (28% of 11)
BACK Barrett back 2/04 after 3, 37 min since (112% of 34)
BACK Quickley back 2/02 after 3, 33 min since (100% of 33)
BACK Poeltl back 2/02 after 11, 30 min since (115% of 26)
BACK Porter back 2/09 after 4, 11 min since (79% of 14)
TOR availability going into 2/12 · 1 day's restOUT Freeman-Liberty missed 8 since 1/28, out tonight
OUT Boucher missed 3 since 2/07, out tonight
BACK Barrett back 2/04 after 3, 36 min since (108% of 34)
BACK Porter back 2/09 after 4, 7 min since (50% of 14)
BACK McDaniels back 2/10 after 2, 3 min since (28% of 11)
BACK Temple back 2/10 after 2, 3 min since (28% of 11)
TOR availability going into 2/14 · 1 day's restOUT Freeman-Liberty missed 9 since 1/28, out tonight
OUT Boucher missed 4 since 2/07, returns tonight: 11 min (77% of 14)
BACK Porter back 2/09 after 4, 7 min since (50% of 14)
BACK McDaniels back 2/10 after 2, 5 min since (43% of 11)
BACK Temple back 2/10 after 2, 3 min since (28% of 11)
TOR availability going into 2/22 · 7 days' restOUT Freeman-Liberty missed 10 since 1/28, out tonight
OUT Temple missed 2 since 2/12, out tonight
BACK Boucher back 2/14 after 4, 11 min since (77% of 14)
BACK Porter back 2/09 after 4, 7 min since (50% of 14)
BACK McDaniels back 2/10 after 2, 5 min since (43% of 11)
HOU availability going into 1/31 · 1 day's restBACK Smith Jr. back 1/29 after 4, 36 min since (113% of 32)
BACK Landale back 1/21 after 2, 11 min since (83% of 14)
NEW Holiday 16 to 23 min over the last 4
HOU availability going into 2/02 · 1 day's restOUT Landale missed 2 since 1/29, out tonight
BACK Smith Jr. back 1/29 after 4, 29 min since (91% of 32)
HOU availability going into 2/04 · 1 day's restOUT Landale missed 3 since 1/29, returns tonight: 7 min (49% of 14)
BACK Smith Jr. back 1/29 after 4, 27 min since (86% of 32)
HOU availability going into 2/06 · 1 day's restBACK Smith Jr. back 1/29 after 4, 25 min since (79% of 32)
BACK Landale back 2/04 after 3, 7 min since (49% of 14)
HOU availability going into 2/09 · 2 days' restBACK Smith Jr. back 1/29 after 4, 28 min since (88% of 32)
BACK Landale back 2/04 after 3, 7 min since (49% of 14)
HOU availability going into 2/10 · back-to-backOUT VanVleet missed 2 since 2/06, out tonight
OUT Landale missed 2 since 2/06, returns tonight: 13 min (94% of 14)
HOU availability going into 2/12 · 1 day's restOUT VanVleet missed 3 since 2/06, out tonight
BACK Landale back 2/04 after 3, 10 min since (71% of 14)
NEW Thompson 22 to 28 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 2/14 · 1 day's restOUT VanVleet missed 4 since 2/06, out tonight
OUT Whitmore missed 2 since 2/10, out tonight
BACK Landale back 2/04 after 3, 10 min since (71% of 14)
NEW Thompson 22 to 31 min over the last 5
NEW Holiday 16 to 23 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 2/22 · 7 days' restOUT VanVleet missed 5 since 2/06, returns tonight: 30 min (83% of 37)
OUT Whitmore missed 3 since 2/10, returns tonight: 24 min (130% of 19)
OUT Landale missed 2 since 2/12, returns tonight: 12 min (88% of 14)
NEW Thompson 22 to 34 min over the last 5
NEW Holiday 16 to 26 min over the last 5
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Toronto comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 126, shooting 49 percent and 41 from three, 20 free throws a game; Barnes at 19 and Quickley at 17 a game. Without Freeman-Liberty (6 straight). One day's rest. Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 116, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 22 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 23 and Sengun at 20 a game. 2 days' rest.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Houston allowing 116 a night to Toronto's 126 and the arc, Toronto at 41 percent from three to Houston's 35. Call it Houston 117, Toronto 116, Toronto keeping it close.
2/02 @ HOU 106-135 — TOR notes
TOR lost 106-135. TOR shot 44% (40 of 91) to HOU's 59%, 11 of 33 from three. The glass went 37-49 against them. Barnes led with 28 (10 of 17, 7 of 8 at the line); Quickley added 25, Trent Jr. 12. Q4 was theirs, 34-33, the deficit cut from 30 to 29, but the other 3 periods went 102-72 against them. Nwora's -21 in 16 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/04 @ OKC 127-135 — TOR notes
TOR lost 127-135 in 2 overtimes. TOR shot 48% (48 of 101) to OKC's 47%, 14 of 35 from three, and went to the line 21 times to OKC's 8 — 17 points from the stripe to their 8. Barrett led with 23 (9 of 16, 2 of 5 from three); Barnes added 19, Schröder 19. Q1 was theirs, 33-23, but the other 5 periods went 112-94 against them. They led by as many as 23. Schröder's -23 in 36 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/05 @ NOP 100-138 — TOR notes
TOR lost 100-138. TOR shot 48% (40 of 84) to NOP's 51%, 10 of 31 from three. TOR turned it over 18 times to NOP's 7, and NOP turned those into 11 steals. The glass went 38-51 against them. Dick led with 22 (9 of 16, 4 of 8 from three); Barnes added 17, Poeltl 14. Q2 was theirs, 31-31, but the other 3 periods went 107-69 against them. Brown's -31 in 26 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/07 @ CHA 123-117 — TOR notes
TOR won 123-117. TOR shot 53% (43 of 81) to CHA's 49%, 17 of 33 from three. Barrett led with 23 (9 of 15, 4 of 6 from three); Barnes added 18, Quickley 18. The hinge was Q4, 32-20: TOR came in trailing by 6 and left it ahead by 6. TOR trailed 54-60 at the half and won the second half 69-57.
2/09 vs HOU 107-104 — TOR notes
TOR won 107-104. TOR shot 42% (40 of 95) to HOU's 45%, 10 of 33 from three. TOR turned it over 11 times to HOU's 21. Quickley led with 25 (9 of 19, 4 of 9 from three); Barrett added 21, Poeltl 16. The hinge was Q1, 34-20: from level to 14 ahead, and the lead reached 22. Quickley was the night's best plus/minus at +21.
2/10 vs CLE — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Toronto comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 126, shooting 47 percent and 38 from three, 20 free throws a game; Barrett at 22 and Barnes at 19 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Without Freeman-Liberty (7 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Cleveland comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 103, shooting 51 percent and 40 from three, 17 free throws a game; Mitchell at 30 and Eva. Mobley at 19 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 4 a night. One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Cleveland allowing 103 a night to Toronto's 126 and the glass, where Cleveland has been plus-4 a night and Toronto minus-5. Call it Cleveland 119, Toronto 110.
2/12 vs SAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Toronto comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 123, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 20 free throws a game; Barrett at 20 and Barnes at 18 a game. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. Without Freeman-Liberty (8 straight). One day's rest. San Antonio comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 119, shooting 44 percent and 30 from three, 19 free throws a game; Vassell at 23 and Wembanyama at 18 a game. That is 5 straight losses. One day's rest.
So: Toronto wins, and the game turns on the arc, Toronto at 37 percent from three to San Antonio's 30 and the glass, where San Antonio has been plus-2 a night and Toronto minus-4. Call it Toronto 117, San Antonio 114, San Antonio keeping it close.
2/14 vs IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Toronto comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 105 a night and allowing 120, shooting 44 percent and 34 from three, 19 free throws a game; Barrett at 18 and Barnes at 16 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Without Freeman-Liberty (9 straight). One day's rest. Indiana comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 116, shooting 54 percent and 39 from three, 19 free throws a game; Siakam at 21 and Turner at 19 a game. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. Without Smith (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Indiana wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Indiana at 39 percent from three to Toronto's 34. Call it Indiana 119, Toronto 115, Toronto keeping it close.
2/22 vs BKN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Toronto comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 118, shooting 45 percent and 32 from three, 22 free throws a game; Barrett at 19 and Barnes at 18 a game. That is 3 straight losses. Without Freeman-Liberty (10 straight). 7 days' rest. Brooklyn comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 104 a night and allowing 119, shooting 46 percent and 41 from three, 16 free throws a game; Bridges at 21 and Thomas at 18 a game. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. 7 days' rest.
So: Toronto wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Toronto has been plus-1 a night and Brooklyn minus-8 and the arc, Brooklyn at 41 percent from three to Toronto's 32. Call it Toronto 116, Brooklyn 112, Brooklyn keeping it close.
1/31 vs NOP 99-110 — HOU notes
HOU lost 99-110. HOU shot 40% (35 of 87) to NOP's 50%, 13 of 44 from three, and got to the line 17 times to NOP's 24. HOU turned it over 5 times to NOP's 16. The glass went 29-56 against them. Ja. Green led with 31 (11 of 20, 5 of 12 from three); Whitmore added 17, VanVleet 16. Q3 was theirs, 25-23, the deficit cut from 7 to 5, but the other 3 periods went 87-74 against them. Smith Jr.'s -19 in 22 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/02 vs TOR 135-106 — HOU notes
HOU won 135-106. HOU shot 59% (55 of 93) to TOR's 44%, 11 of 31 from three. The glass went 49-37 for them. Whitmore led with 25 (10 of 17, 3 of 7 from three); Sengun added 24, Thompson 19. The hinge was Q1, 37-23: from level to 14 ahead, and the lead reached 31. Thompson was the night's best plus/minus at +27.
2/04 @ MIN 90-111 — HOU notes
HOU lost 90-111. HOU shot 35% (31 of 88) to MIN's 44%, 10 of 30 from three. The glass went 41-58 against them. Sengun led with 15 (7 of 14); Whitmore added 14, VanVleet 11. Q2 was theirs, 21-17, the deficit cut from 8 to 4, but the other 3 periods went 94-69 against them. VanVleet's -27 in 32 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/06 @ IND 129-132 — HOU notes
HOU lost 129-132. HOU took 11 more shots (97 to 86), fed by 20 offensive rebounds, but shot 52% to IND's 63%, 12 of 25 from three, and went to the line 23 times to IND's 14 — 17 points from the stripe to their 9. The glass went 48-25 for them. Ja. Green led with 30 (12 of 21, 3 of 5 from three); Brooks added 23, Smith Jr. 20. Q2 was theirs, 36-27, turning a 2-point deficit into a 7-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 105-93 against them. They led by as many as 10. Whitmore's -14 in 21 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/09 @ TOR 104-107 — HOU notes
HOU lost 104-107. HOU shot 45% (38 of 85) to TOR's 42%, 15 of 38 from three. HOU turned it over 21 times to TOR's 11, and TOR turned those into 14 steals. Brooks led with 20 (6 of 13, 4 of 5 from three); Whitmore added 17, Smith Jr. 12. Q4 was theirs, 33-19, the deficit cut from 17 to 3, but the other 3 periods went 88-71 against them. Ja. Green's -23 in 22 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/10 @ ATL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 132 a night and allowing 130, shooting 49 percent and 39 from three, 24 free throws a game; Young at 30 and Murray at 21 a game. Without Murray (2 straight), Capela (3 straight), Krejčí (24 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Houston comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 113, shooting 46 percent and 36 from three, 20 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 18 and Whitmore at 16 a game. That is 3 straight losses. Without VanVleet (2 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Atlanta wins, and the game turns on the defense, Houston allowing 113 a night to Atlanta's 130 and the turnovers, Houston giving it away 13 times a game to Atlanta's 10. Call it Atlanta 121, Houston 118, Houston keeping it close.
2/12 vs NYK — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 116, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 20 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 17 and Sengun at 16 a game. That is 4 straight losses. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without VanVleet (3 straight). One day's rest. New York comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 116, shooting 45 percent and 31 from three, 19 free throws a game; Brunson at 36 and DiVincenzo at 26 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Randle (7 straight), Anunoby (7 straight), Robinson (32 straight). One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the turnovers, Houston giving it away 16 times a game to New York's 10 and the arc, Houston at 37 percent from three to New York's 31. Call it Houston 115, New York 112, New York keeping it close.
2/14 @ MEM — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Memphis comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 101 a night and allowing 117, shooting 45 percent and 37 from three, 11 free throws a game; Jackson Jr. at 26 and Jackson at 19 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 10 a night. Without Bane (16 straight), LaRavia (15 straight), Williams (8 straight). One day's rest. Houston comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 115, shooting 44 percent and 37 from three, 24 free throws a game; Brooks at 17 and Ja. Green at 17 a game. Without VanVleet (4 straight), Whitmore (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-4 a night and Memphis minus-10 and the line, where Houston takes 24 free throws a game to Memphis's 11. Call it Houston 112, Memphis 110, Memphis keeping it close.
2/22 @ NOP — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 108, shooting 50 percent and 36 from three, 22 free throws a game; Williamson at 25 and McCollum at 18 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Daniels (3 straight), Hawkins (2 straight). 7 days' rest. Houston comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 117, shooting 45 percent and 36 from three, 24 free throws a game; Brooks at 20 and Ja. Green at 17 a game. It has won the glass by 9 a night. Without VanVleet (5 straight), Whitmore (3 straight). 7 days' rest.
So: New Orleans wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-9 a night and New Orleans plus-3 and the defense, New Orleans allowing 108 a night to Houston's 117. Call it New Orleans 116, Houston 110.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
TORBB B. Brown
GD G. Dick
GT G. Trent Jr.
IQ I. Quickley
JN J. Nwora
JP J. Poeltl
JP J. Porter
RB R. Barrett
SB S. Barnes
HOUAH A. Holiday
AS A. Sengun
AT A. Thompson
CW C. Whitmore
DB D. Brooks
JG J. Green
JS J. Smith Jr.
JT J. Tate
JG Ja. Green
JG Je. Green
RB R. Bullock Jr.
TOR/HOU the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Immanuel Quickley scores 25 as Raptors beat Rockets 107-104 for 2nd straight victory
TORONTO -- — Immanuel Quickley scored 25 points, RJ Barrett had 21 and the Toronto Raptors held on to beat Houston 107-104 on Friday night for their fourth straight home win over the Rockets.
Jakob Poeltl had 16 points and 12 rebounds and Scottie Barnes added 13 points and 10 rebounds as the Raptors won their second straight after losing eight of nine. Toronto, coming off a victory over Charlotte on Wednesday, hadn’t won consecutive games since beating Cleveland on Jan. 1 and Memphis on Jan. 3.
Barnes shot 4 for 16 and narrowly missed a triple-double, finishing with eight of Toronto’s 24 assists.
“I thought his playmaking tonight was outstanding,” Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic said. “He was finding his teammates.”
Barrett’s seven assists were a season high.
Toronto’s biggest lead was 22 points before Houston cut its deficit to one, 105-104, on a 3-pointer by Dillon Brooks in the final 30 seconds of the fourth quarter. Barrett answered with a pair of free throws.
With five seconds left, Houston’s Aaron Holiday missed a 3-point attempt that would have tied the game. The Rockets got the ball back, but veteran forward Jeff Green missed the final shot.
“We put ourselves in a good position,” Green said. “Some shots fall, some don’t. You live with the results.”
Brooks scored 11 of his 20 points in the fourth, and Jabari Smith Jr. had 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Rockets. Cam Whitmore scored 17 points before leaving because of a sprained right ankle as Houston lost its fourth straight on the road. Houston is 5-19 away from home.
The Rockets have lost three straight following a home win over Toronto on Feb. 2.
“We just played this team a week ago and didn’t have a whole lot of carryover,” Houston coach Ime Udoka said.
Former Raptors guard Fred VanVleet missed his second straight game because of a strained left adductor, missing a chance to play in the city where he spent the first seven years of his career and won an NBA title in 2019.
Udoka said earlier this week that VanVleet likely won’t return until closer to the All-Star break.
Fans rose for a standing ovation when the Raptors honored VanVleet with a video tribute during the game’s first timeout. VanVleet walked onto the court and lifted his hands in a gesture of thanks.
Toronto newcomers Ochai Agbaji and Kelly Olynyk , acquired from Utah on Thursday, were active, but did not play.
The Raptors scored 10 points off eight Houston turnovers in the opening quarter and led 34-20 after one.
“We’ve got to bring that intensity from the beginning,” Brooks said. “Our starters, including myself, were a little slow to begin with. We can’t dig ourselves those types of holes.”
Whitmore scored 15 points in the second, when the Rockets took their first lead of the game by starting the quarter with a 19-2 run. Toronto rallied and led 61-49 at the half and took an 88-71 lead to the fourth.
Referee Courtney Kirkland did not return for the second half. A Raptors spokesperson said Kirkland left because of an illness.