TORONTO - With just over seven seconds left on the clock and Fridays game hanging in the balance, a sellout Air Canada Centre crowd rose to their feet, holding their breath in anticipation. Bruno Fernando Jersey . Theyve been holding their breath for six years now, but finally they can exhale. As Celtics forward Jared Sullinger forced up a wild, off-balance runner, the building erupted. It was official. The Raptors are heading back to the post-season. "We made it," shouted Amir Johnson repeatedly as the media filtered into Torontos locker room. "Its a satisfying, kind of overwhelming feeling," he described, following his teams 105-103 victory over Boston, officially snapping the Raptor five-year playoff drought. "Its been six years since this team, this organization made it to the playoffs. This team has worked so hard. We deserved it. Weve been playing our butts off, playing through injuries. Weve had our ups and downs." "Weve made it." Not lost on the team was the fact that they stole a game, their 41st victory of the season, that probably shouldnt have come down to the final possession. Down by four with under three minutes to play, it looked like the Raptors would have to hope for a New York Knicks loss later in the evening or wait until Sunday to punch their ticket to the playoffs. Theyve been resilient all year, so why wouldnt they be now? First DeMar DeRozan drained a fadeaway jumper, then Johnson hit the game-winning put-back layup. "It was fitting," Dwane Casey said. DeRozan and Johnson, the teams longest tenured players, were responsible for Torontos final four points. For them, this moment was a little sweeter. "It means a lot, honestly, man," said DeRozan, the Raptors fifth-year guard, who will make his post-season debut next month. "Especially for me and Amir and what weve been through here with the tough seasons, through the ups and downs and the struggles. We stuck with it." The only player in the building that could give a firsthand account of the Raptors last playoff experience - a five-game, first round defeat at the hands of the Orlando Magic in 2007-08 - was Celtics forward Kris Humphries. Only four other players from that team are currently on an NBA roster, but DeRozan and Johnson – who arrived the year after – have both been in Toronto long enough to appreciate what a night like this means to the franchise, the city and the Raptors long-suffering fan base. "It was all worth it," said DeRozan. "These fans stuck behind us every single day and theyre going to continue to do so. Thats the reason why we work extremely hard. Our fans definitely push us." Of course, it was just a formality. It was inevitable, only a matter of time. Toronto wasnt going to go winless in its remaining games, just like the Knicks were not going to run the table the rest of the way. Still, they have refused to count their chickens before they hatched and for that you can credit the humility and focus of their head coach. Moments after the win, a loud chorus of applause could be heard from outside the teams locker room. Finally, they could celebrate, albeit behind closed doors. Even Casey, who wouldnt pat himself on the back and likely never will, found a way to indulge in what the evening represented. "Were excited about it," he admitted. "My hat is off to all the guys whove come through here," said Casey, crediting MLSE chairman Larry Tanenbaum as well as former general manager Bryan Colangelo for their contributions to the process. "To DeMar DeRozan [and] Amir Johnson, who have been through it all and for the fans, the fans for understanding and being patient. I know they didnt see the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but its a process. You dont build Rome overnight in this league. Is very difficult to do. You talk about rebuilding, its a hard gig." The Raptors have surpassed every rational expectation, going 35-19 since the trade of Rudy Gay in early December. Its been a season of firsts for a franchise on the cusp of its 20th birthday, a franchise many pundits wrote off for dead after selling off its highest-paid player. "Everybody who writes something on a piece of paper isnt always right, thats how I look at it," said DeRozan, the first-time All-Star. Hes right. He and his team have proven a lot of people wrong. As the Celtics made their run, cutting their deficit - once 14 - down and ultimately taking the lead, DeRozan came through yet again. With Kyle Lowry slowed by an ankle injury he sustained in the first half, DeRozan picked him up and scored 24 of his game-high 30 points in the final 24 minutes. 16 of his 27 career 30-point games have come this season. With 10 games remaining and their spot in the pos-tseason locked up, the team can shift its attention to seeding but most importantly, going into the playoffs healthy and with momentum. "We cant be satisfied," Casey repeated, with his team moving into soul possession of the third seed following the Chicago Bulls loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday. "We still want to continue on and weve still got to get better." Lowrys injury scare With three minutes to go in the second quarter, Lowry limped to the locker room after turning his right ankle while back-pedaling to get back on defence. After being examined by the medical staff, the Raptor point guard and most important player was able to return, starting the second half with his ankle taped up. As per usual, Lowry shrugged off whatever pain he was in after the win. "Im a little sore, but Im fine," he said after scoring nine points in 33 minutes. "Im okay. Good to go." Revenge of the second unit Naturally, Casey was frustrated with his under-performing bench after they were outscored 51-7 in Boston on Wednesday. "I challenged them before the game," said the Raptors coach. "I got on them about their productivity or lack thereof in the Boston game. I challenged them. I said, Look, guys want playing time, when the opportunity comes, youve got to do something, whether its defence, knocking somebody down, taking a charge, whatever. And they came through." Greivis Vasquez, who scored all seven of the benchs points on Wednesday, led the teams reserves with 15, but Chuck Hayes and John Salmons were also productive on both ends of the floor. Combined, the three former Kings - along with Tyler Hansbrough, who logged five minutes - totalled 28 points on the night. Patterson nearing a return Although he missed his 12th straight game, Patrick Patterson has been making progress and appears to be on the verge of returning from his right elbow injury. Although the Raptors havent had much practice time to get Patterson back up to speed - a concern Casey expressed before Fridays game - the Raptors forward has been able to participate in smaller, three-on-three scrimmages since being cleared for contact earlier this week. "[His] conditioning is probably going to be step behind a little bit," Casey acknowledged. "Its not going to be where he was before stepping away, so thats going to be expected. Thats why now we need to kind of get him back in rhythm and with the lack of practice time its going to have to be in a game situation." Patterson could be back in uniform this weekend in Florida, as the Raptors begin a back-to-back set with the Magic on Sunday before visiting the Heat Monday evening. The stat With their 41st win of the season, the Raptors secured a .500 record for the sixth time in franchise history and first since 2007-08, the last year they qualified for the playoffs. The quote "My grandmother called," Johnson told the media after his team clinched a spot in the playoffs. "She said that she was proud." Charlie Brown Hawks Jersey . -- Lara Gut of Switzerland regained the overall World Cup lead with Sundays super-G win in Lake Louise, Alta. Mike Bibby Jersey . -- Phil Mickelson came to the St. https://www.thehawkslockerroom.com/ . Miikka Kiprusoff had just announced his retirement after a decade-long run in Calgary and it would be up to Berra and Ramo to fill the void.SALT LAKE CITY - The Detroit Pistons hadnt played this well in Utah since John Stockton and Karl Malone were on the Jazz. Andre Drummond had 19 points and 14 rebounds, and Detroit shot a season-best 55 per cent to blow by the Jazz 114-94 Monday night. It was the Pistons first victory in Utah since Richard Hamilton had 28 points in an 80-78 squeaker on Nov. 6, 2002, that was aided by an ill Malone taking the night off. When guard Rodney Stuckey found out, he couldnt believe it. "Wow. Well this is very rare, absolutely, but we really played as a team," said Stuckey, who had 19 points. Brandon Jennings, who scored 15, said he was probably 12 or 13 years old the last time the Pistons won in Utah — and this one reminded him of being a kid on the playground. "Tonight felt like a pickup game. We were getting things that were so easy," Jennings said. Drummond shot 9 for 10 from the field and Greg Monroe added 18 points and 11 rebounds to help the Pistons snap a 14-game road losing streak in the finale of a four-game Western Conference trip. "We were both aggressive. We moved around trying to get second shots ... and we did a good job being patient," Monroe said. Gordon Hayward scored 32 points — his highest total since he had 37 against Oklahoma City on Jan. 7 — to lead the Jazz, who have lost seven of eight. Hayward converted a three-point play to slice the lead to 88-76 with 10:03 to play, but the Jazz couldnt get any closer. Each time they made a run, the Pistons responded with a 3-pointer or a basket near the rim. "Its too difficult when you let teams get going like this. They feel good about all the shots they get," Utah coach Tyrone Corbin said. Detroit went 9 for 17 from 3-point range and ended a five-game losing streak. Just as they did when their comeback fell just short against the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday, the Pistons used crisp ball movement to find open shots. They topped their previous mark for accuracy (54 per cent) set against Atlanta on Feb. 21. "We just took what their defence gave us. We were able to move the ball around, we were making shots and we made everybody look good tonight," Jenniings said. Jeremy Lin Hawks Jersey. Monroe scored on a pass from Kyle Singler to stake the Pistons to their largest lead at 71-46 in the third quarter. The Pistons still have an outside shot at the playoffs, but they need more efforts like this one. Detroit outrebounded Utah 53-33 and hounded the Jazz into 7-of-27 shooting from beyond the arc. The Pistons gained a game on the Hawks, who lost to Phoenix on Monday, but still trail them by 5 1/2 games for the final Eastern Conference playoff berth with 12 games remaining. The Jazz missed the offensive creativity of Alec Burks, the teams second-leading scorer. He sat out his second straight game with a sprained left ankle. Utahs roster doesnt feature many players who can create their own shot, and once the Pistons interrupted the Jazz sets, they were forced into several off-balance jumpers to beat the shot clock. In the first half, the Pistons didnt miss many attempts, shooting at a 61 per cent clip. When they did happen to misfire, they were often there to get the rebound and put the ball back in. Of their 16 misses, the Pistons retrieved nine of them on their way to a 60-40 halftime lead. The Pistons avenged a 110-89 loss at home Jan. 17 when Trey Burke led Utah with 20 points and 12 assists. This time around, the former Michigan star was outplayed by both Jennings and Stuckey and shot just 6 of 15 for 15 points with two assists. "Its tough, but weve just got to continue to learn," Burke said. "They had more energy than us early on and when we did try and make a push, it was kind of too late." The Jazz, who have shown effort throughout this trying season, looked spent and splintered against Detroit. Players and coaches were yelling at each other, no one was sprinting to the timeout huddles, and hustle plays were few and far between. The Jazz, who never led, own the worst record in the Western Conference. NOTES: The Jazz were only able to convert Detroits 13 turnovers into six points. Utah had a season-low seven turnovers, but they led to 14 Detroit points. ... The Pistons outscored the Jazz 34-17 in the second, their most dominant quarter of the season. ... Drummond entered the game ranked second in the NBA in field goal percentage. ' ' '