TORONTO - The Raptors nearly shocked everyone with their second-half comeback in an eventual defeat to the two-time defending champs. Everyone except the champs themselves, that is. "We get the best of each team we play," the Heats Dwyane Wade recognized shortly before his team handed the division-leading Raptors their ninth loss in 15 games to begin the season. "We dont even look at records, it doesnt matter." "Teams come out and theyre ready to play us, and rightfully so. Weve earned it." But the home team did not come out ready to play, not like their coach had hoped and expected them to following a similarly slow start in a defeat three days prior. "Our defence, pressure on the basketball, tags and our rotations were a step slow in the first half," Dwane Casey said after Torontos 90-83 loss to Miami. A well-oiled machine, Miamis offence steamrolled over the Raptors in the first half. Toronto fell behind by 14 at the break and trailed by as much as 20 midway through the third quarter before the alarm clock finally went off. Torontos defence woke up, holding the Heat to one field goal in the final five minutes of the third quarter and cutting the deficit to two late in the fourth. Still, as it was against Brooklyn on Tuesday and has been so often in the past, it wasnt enough to save the Raptors from suffering an inevitable loss to a team that feasts on those who lose their focus. "Right now were a one-half team," Casey said. "Weve got to get two solid halves put together." Easier said than done. "Whats it going to take," Tyler Hansbrough asked, rhetorically. "Thats a good question. Its a mindset. On the road weve had games where weve put it together and played pretty well, weve just got to do it at home." "I dont know the answer to be honest with you," he continued. "Were a hell of a team when we fight back but we cant let it get to that," said DeRozan, who again was exceptional in defeat; scoring 25 points on 10-of-20 shooting. "Weve got to be a team that plays a full, two halves of basketball." Even after showing up late, the Raptors had their opportunities thanks in large part to a renewed defensive focus that stymied Miamis free-flowing offence late in the game. Alas, Toronto turned the ball over 21 times - leading to 26 Heat points - and missed eight of ten fourth-quarter free throws. DeRozan and Gay, both 80 per cent free throw shooters on the season prior to Fridays game, connected on five of their 14 attempts from the stripe. "Thats everything," Gay said of the missed free throws. "To finish a game youve got to hit free throws and finish at the rim. It was tough for us to do either." Coming off a 3-for-12 performance on Tuesday - one that prompted a late-night shooting session - Gay was moderately better, scoring 21 points, however he needed 21 shots to do so. His inefficiency from the painted area persisted, especially late in the game, and his pair of missed free throws with a minute and a half left were crucial in defeat. The Raptors are still searching for an answer to Caseys conundrum. How do they put it all together? The Heat are and will continue to be the NBAs bench mark. Theyre more than an enormously talented team. On top of their talent they have developed an identity and chemistry as a team that is a joy to watch and almost impossible to stop. No matter how talented the team, the Heat know that what theyve been able to achieve does not come easy for anybody. "You cant cheat it," Wade preached. "I think the first year when we were together we tried to cheat it, we tried to say, lets do it right now and we got to the championship but when we got there we realized that the continuity that we really needed, when we really needed it, wasnt there." "We didnt have enough time to build it. So it takes time to build." Toronto has dropped 12 straight games to the Heat since LeBron James and Chris Bosh joined forces with Wade and 13 straight contests to Miami overall. Up next The Raptors will conclude a season-long four game homestand on Sunday afternoon playing host to the Denver Nuggets, a game you can catch on TSN 1050 Radio beginning at 1:00pm et. Basketball Shoes Online Store . Six years of waiting are finally over for the Dallas defenceman. Daley had a goal and an assist, Kari Lehtonen recorded his fifth shutout of the season, and the Stars clinched their first playoff berth since 2008 with a 3-0 victory against the St. Basketball Shoes From China . 28 with a Vancouver entry for the first time in 10 years and a novel new collective bargaining agreement. https://www.cheapbasketballshoesstore.com/ . But that changed when he committed a five-minute major penalty and helped pave the way for a comeback by the Philadelphia Flyers. Vincent Lecavalier scored at 2:45 of overtime and the Flyers rallied from a two-goal deficit for a 5-4 victory on Sunday. Cheap Basketball Shoes China . As deep as their roster is, they need their superstar. Rose scored 23 points in his return from a five-game absence due to back pain, and Chicago hung on to beat the struggling Atlanta Hawks 90-79 on Monday. Cheap Basketball Shoes Free Shipping . According to TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger, the New York Rangers winger skated with extras and goalies today.VANCOUVER -- More than four years after the Olympic flame went out on the West Coast, the Vancouver Organizing Committee released its final reports Thursday and turned out the lights. VANOC said the Games broke even, with total revenues and expenses just shy of $1.9 billion. The group that organized the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympics has no more assets or outstanding debts and has asked government to dissolve the company. "It was 11 years ago yesterday we took the stage in Prague and we made promises," CEO John Furlong said in an interview. "We made commitments in the name of the country, we made commitments to the IOC and we made commitments to the Canadian public that we would deliver the Games in the black and so we set out to do that." It was a challenging journey, he said, pointing out the global economic collapse in 2008. "I think that worried us," Furlong said. With the Sochi Games in the not-so-distant past and fresh concerns about the World Cup in Brazil, Furlong said there has been much discussion about the cost of such large events and the difficulties some countries have had. "I look at our situation and think we are a very good model of how to do these events. This is, to me, very good for the Canada brand of being reliable, being trustworthy, keeping your promises, being on time and on budget, being responsible about the things that really matter to the public," he said. At the end of the day, the final financial report said the federal government contributed $74.4 million, the British Columbia government $113.4 million and other governments $176 million. The Internaational Olympic Committee kicked in $659 million in sponsorships and contributions to help cover the tab.dddddddddddd. Ticket sales raised $269 million, while licensing and merchandising accounted for another $54 million. An independent audit by Ernst and Young confirmed the results. The final financial statement said all sites have been remediated and turned over to the province and local governments as legacy venues and the organizing committee asked government to dissolve the company after its final meeting on June 27. The final report said several claims and disputed contracts have been resolved since the event, along with an 18-month coroners review of the Whistler Sliding Centre, where a Georgian luger was killed in a training accident. Critics point out that some of the most expensive infrastructure of the Games, including the Sea to Sky Highway, the Vancouver Convention Centre and a rapid transit line to the airport were not included in the final tally. The expansion of the Vancouver Convention Centre cost $883 million, $388 million over budget. The SkyTrains Canada Line linking Vancouver to the airport cost $2.1 billion. But Furlong said all the buildings and infrastructure are currently in use and board chairman Ken Dobell said the Games left a debt-free legacy for the country. "First of all, it cost what it was supposed to cost," Dobell said. Significant capital upgrades were made that had to happen sooner or later, and the host communities now have recreation and community facilities for residents. "Was it a worthwhile endeavour? The way Vancouver did it, for sure," he said. ' ' '