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NEW YORK -- In the final dramatic couple of minutes Sunday night, offensively-gifted DeMar DeRozan turned into a defensive superstar, sent sprawling to the floor when he took two charges. Not to be outdone, hobbling six-foot point guard Kyle Lowry dropped a lovely sky hook over 6-11 giant and future Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett. The final minutes of the Toronto Raptors 87-79 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday could define this young team and their season -- fighting to the end, finding a way to win. "Thats just us, man," DeRozan said. "Were resilient. Were not going to give up until the games over, were going to fight it through. . . We did it on the defensive end to win this game." DeRozan scored 24 points and Lowry added 22 to lift the beaten-up Raptors to their first playoff victory on the road since Game 1 against Philadelphia way back in 2001. After the final whistle, a smiling coach Dwane Casey said it was the most proud hes ever been of his team. "(But) were on a mission, its a marathon," the coach added. "We cant get too excited about a win, cant get too down about a loss. Thats what the playoffs are about." Amir Johnson, playing on the wonky ankle that has plagued him all season, finished with 17 points. Patrick Patterson and Greivis Vasquez finished with nine points apiece off the bench, and Patterson grabbed a team-high nine rebounds. The best-of-seven Eastern Conference playoff series heads to Toronto tied at two wins apiece. Game 5 is Wednesday at Air Canada Centre, while Game 6 will be back at Barclays Center on Friday. The Raptors led by as much as 17 points -- the biggest lead by either team in this series -- in the first half, but struggled through the second and third quarters, running into foul trouble and failing to hit shots. Still, the nailbiter went into the fourth tied at 67-67. From there, the Raptors dug in with one of their best defensive efforts of the season, holding the Nets to just three baskets in the final 12 minutes. And when the final whistle blew, the Raptors fans in attendance at Barclays Center stood and applauded the Toronto players off the floor. "I think were just encouraged," Lowry said. "Were going home 2-2. Were encouraged by that. We got a split, now its a three-game series, now weve got to take care of home. Our confidence is high, were excited." Lowry, who came away from Fridays game with a bad right knee and a busted lip, was noticeably limping at times. "Im OK," Lowry said. "Its something thats controllable, we can do what weve got to do to get through the playoffs, its nothing where I need surgery. Its definitely a pain, but Im not going to worry about it, Im not going to complain about it, Im going to go out there and do my job." Lowry kept his composure despite playing the entire second half with five fouls. "Hes dealing with a lot right now, and he came through with flying colours," Casey said. "Fought through foul trouble, a little bit of adversity throughout the game and still came through." Lowrys teammates heaped praise on their tough-as-nails point guard in the post-game dressing room. "I am not surprised at all that Kyle is limping around," Chuck Hayes said. "Man, he was limping all four quarters. Hes a warrior. Hes everything to this team. The guy gives it his all. We just feed off him." Lowry and DeRozan -- the teams leaders through this remarkable season -- sat side by side at the podium after the game, addressing the media. They talked about the chemistry in this young team. "Were a pretty close-knit team, we understand the situation that were in, its a stepping stone for us," Lowry said. "Were getting our feet wet. This man (DeRozan) is becoming a superstar in front of everybodys eyes. Hes doing it on the defensive end, the offensive end." They both chuckled when Lowry was asked about his late-game hook shot over Garnett that gave Toronto a six-point lead. "I think that was the first time (Ive done that) in a game," Lowry said. "Thats something I work on in the summertime. Kevin Garnett is 6-11, hes a guy who can block shots, and I thought that was a shot I can go to. I took the shot to be aggressive. It looked good. It felt good." There was more laughter when DeRozan was asked if the two charges he took down the stretch marked a career high. "Nah. I dont think so. I hope its not," DeRozan said. "With Kyle (being injured), I knew I had to pick up the offence early, so I did that, just come out aggressive and I knew they were going to change up and start trying to get the ball out of my hands. . . I knew I could do some things on the defensive end and thats what I did." Paul Pierce led the Nets with 22 points, while Mirza Teletovic had 12. Garnett and Deron Williams finished with 10 points apiece. "Theyre a competitive group," Pierce said on the Raptors play down the stretch. "Weve seen that all season long, how well they play, getting 48 wins, how well they play in the fourth quarter, so many comeback wins. We understand that this is a group thats not going to back down, thats not going to give up. They earn a lot of respect around the league." The Nets won Games 1 and 3, while the Raptors took Game 2 in whats been an incredibly even matchup all season between these two teams. Prior to Sunday, Toronto had outscored the Nets 678-677 in their seven meetings. The Raptors had struggled with turnovers all series, but cleaned up their act Sunday, giving up the ball just 12 times. The one negative on the night was Terrence Ross, who was M.I.A. for a fourth straight game. Couple with his struggles, Landry Fields being sidelined with a bad back, and the number of Raptors in early foul trouble, Casey went deep into his bench, utilizing John Salmons, Chuck Hayes and Steve Novak for stretches of the third and fourth quarters. Ross, who dropped 51 points in a game earlier this season, has struggled in his playoff debut, and had another rough night Sunday, finishing with zero points in 16 minutes. Fields, who got dumped on his back during Fridays game, didnt dress. While the Raptors braced a hostile crowd at Barclays Center -- especially after GM Masai Ujiris now famous F-bomb about Brooklyn -- it never really materialized. The crowds on either Friday or Sunday didnt pack the auditory punch of the Air Canada Centre. Fans waved white towels, and there was the odd chant of "Ref you suck!" A group of Nets fans chanted "Raptors suck!" before the singing of O Canada. There were large pockets of red-clad Raptors fans in attendance, and their cheers for Raptors baskets down the stretch almost negated Brooklyns homecourt advantage. Rihanna sat courtside, along with Michael K. Williams and Felicia (Snoop) Pearson -- Omar and Snoop from "The Wire." Williams did the Nets introductions. Russian boxer Ruslan Provodnikov, the current world light welterweight champion, was also in attendance. Meanwhile, back in Toronto on Sunday, thousands of fans jammed Maple Leaf Square to watch the game on the giant screen outside Air Canada Centre. They chanted "We the North!" Two fans participated in a tug-of-war with a Nets T-shirt on stage, eventually ripping it. Amir Johnson led the way with 11 points as the Raptors sprinted out to an 11-point lead just three minutes after tipoff. They continued to build their advantage, and seven straight points by Johnson put Toronto up by 15. They led 35-22 at the end of the first. The Raptors stretched their advantage to 17 points with 5:40 left in the first half. But the Nets went on a 14-2 run to pull within five points. The Raptors headed to the locker-room with a 51-44 lead at halftime. Toronto went a horrible 1-for-16 to open the third quarter, but managed to remain within five points of the Nets, and the game went into the fourth all tied up. Wholesale Puma Shoes Free Shipping . Roy says he will know more about Duchenes potential playing status Sunday. Duchene has been out since damaging the MCL in his left knee when he ran into a teammate against San Jose on March 29. Hes been skating on his own all week, before joining the team Saturday hours before a pivotal game in a series tied at 2. Cheap Puma Shoes Canada . The Gatineau Olympiques head coach will lead Canada in its quest to end its gold medal drought at the 2015 world junior hockey championship held in Montreal and Toronto at the end of this year. http://www.wholesalepumacanada.com/ . A strong fastball. A big, bending curveball that can buckle hitters at the knees. Against the Detroit Tigers on Sunday, Elias put the entire package together against one of the leagues strongest lineups. Wholesale Puma Shoes Canada . Coming off a 6-0 drubbing at Chelsea on Saturday, Arsenal endured another demoralizing result after rallying for a 2-1 lead -- only to concede a fluke equalizer. Puma Shoes Discount Canada . -- Theres been so much talk about Mike Moustakas at the plate that the third baseman ignored the conversation Wednesday -- even after doing something positive. OAKLAND, Calif. -- Oakland Athletics owner Lew Wolff said Wednesday the club has reached a 10-year lease agreement with the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority to stay at the Oakland Coliseum. The deal that would run through 2025 is subject to approval by the Coliseum Joint Powers Authority, which is scheduled to vote on the extension Friday. The City of Oakland and Alameda County Board of Supervisors also would have to approve the deal. Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig commended both sides for reaching a deal on a lease extension, while offering, "I continue to believe that the Athletics need a new facility and am fully supportive of the clubs view that the best site in Oakland is the Coliseum site." "We very much appreciate Commissioner Seligs support for Oakland to be the home of the As," coliseum authority Chairman Nate Miley added in a statement. "We also agree, and we believe the As do as well, that long-term the Coliseum is the best site for them in the East Bay." Oakland Mayor Jean Quan said Wednesday that the city is working to make sure the team remains in Oakland for years to come. "We are still negotiating, so were surprised by the announcement of an agreement," Quan said. "We plan to meet tomorrow, continue negotiations, and hope there will be an agreement soon." The two-time defending AL West champion Athletics are still hoping for a new stadium, but Wolff said a proposed site near Oaklands popular Jack London Square neighbourhood has proved not to be a feasible option. "Howard Terminal as a potential ballpark site has been and is totally rejected by MLB and the As," Wolff said in an email to The Associated Prress.dddddddddddd Selig reiterated that in a statement Wednesday. He has long supported Wolffs efforts to build a stadium, but hasnt ruled whether the As can move into the San Francisco Giants territory in technology-rich Silicon Valley and San Jose. "Contrary to what some have suggested, the committee that has studied this issue did not determine that the Howard Terminal site was the best location for a new facility in Oakland," Selig said. The rundown Coliseum has had multiple sewage problems in the past year and an outage affecting the outfield lights against the New York Yankees on June 14. Despite the As recent on-field success, they are currently 24th in the majors in attendance with an average of 23,462 per game. "Its not something I think much about, to be honest," Oakland first baseman Brandon Moss said in New York, where the As were set to play the Mets. "Obviously, everyone knows that its well-documented, the history of the Coliseum and the things that theyve dealt with in the past few years. But honestly, as players who play in it every single night, we dont come in and say, God, we wish we had a new stadium! Obviously we do, but at the same time we understand that thats our home and thats where we play and its our job to go out and perform regardless of where we are." The Coliseum is the only stadium in the United States still used as the home for an NFL and MLB team. The Raiders are in the final year of their lease at the Coliseum and are interested in building a new stadium at the site. While the As deal is expected to contain "out clauses" for both sides, it could complicate the Raiders desire for a new stadium. ' ' '