TORONTO - The Raptors locker room was unnervingly quiet Friday evening, about how you would expect it after the implausible ending that sealed the teams fate in a double-overtime disaster. Dawuane Smoot Jersey . In the back corner sat an inconsolable John Salmons, the elephant in the room. Facing his locker, Salmons slouched forward in his chair, his head down in his hands and a long black towel draped over him. One by one his teammates came over to comfort him, patting him on the back and offering words of encouragement. He didnt move. He remained in that position, perfectly still for over 30 minutes. They win as a team and they lose as a team, but Salmons felt the brunt of it on this night. What seemed like a sure victory late in the second overtime period began to unravel when an exceptional player made an exceptional shot. With the Raptors up by eight, 49 seconds away from an improbable victory and season-sweep of the 50-win Oklahoma City Thunder, Kevin Durant banked in a 27-foot three-point jumper. Following another Thunder three - this one courtesy veteran assassin Derek Fisher - Salmons threw away an inbounds pass on the baseline, only to break up Durants runner and get sent to the line. With less than 10 seconds remaining, now up two, Salmons clanked both free throws, paving the way for the leagues leading scorer to do what he does best. Break hearts. "Great players make great plays," Dwane Casey said of Durant, moments after his 31-foot pull-up dagger gave the Thunder a 119-118 victory. Since coming over from Sacramento in December, Salmons has been praised for his poise and veteran savvy late in games, many of which hes helped them win. This was not his finest hour. "Hes a veteran (and) in those situations youve got to believe in him, that hes going to make those free throws," Casey said of Salmons, playing in place of Terrence Ross, who left the game with a hip contusion. "We had to go with John in that situation. Hes been one of our best defenders in that situation, but its not just one guy." The Raptors, now 1-6 in OT this season, need to close out these types of games. Salmons needs to be better down the stretch, they know it and so does he. It was three months ago, almost to this day that the Raptors pulled off their most impressive win of the season, a 104-98 victory in Oklahoma City. Coming off an OT win in Dallas a couple days prior and trailing by as many as 10 in the fourth, Toronto shocked the Thunder, who were undefeated at home at the time. "It helped kick start us going forward," Casey said of that night. "It helped our chemistry, it helped our togetherness it helped blend in the old and the new guys together." It would not have happened if not for Salmons. The 12-year vet spearheaded his new teams comeback, scoring nine points in the final quarter. After the game his teammates raved about his leadership and calming effect on the floor. Kyle Lowry gave him the game ball. Like Patrick Paterson - still out with an injured elbow - Greivis Vasquez, who was spectacular before fouling out Friday, and Chuck Hayes, Salmons fingerprints are all over the teams resurgence and that should not be forgotten, internally or externally. The Raptors proved something to themselves in OKC that night. They proved that they belonged. Three months later, clinging onto the Easts third seed and top spot in the Atlantic Division, they fell just short of proving something to everybody else. For whatever reason the franchise and its fan base has been battered by losses of the devastating variety to the point in which theyre almost immune to them. Toronto has lost 10 straight overtime games at home, an NBA record. "It does (hurt)," Casey admitted, "but we cant let it." "We cant let this game (give us a) hangover. (Its) a big learning experience for our guys. Youre playing with one of the top teams in the league, one of the top players... and you give yourself a chance to win in (double) overtime." KD the magnificent It seems impossible to fathom that Friday once started off as a slow night for Durant. The Thunder forward made just three of his 12 first-half shots but once Russell Westbrook went down in the third quarter - colliding with Lowry and spraining his surgically repaired right knee - Durant, with the help of some generous officiating, completely took over. Durant scored 51 and finished with 12 rebounds and seven assists, getting to the line 19 times and extending his streak of 25 or more points to 34 games, longest since Michael Jordans 40-game run in 1986-87. Amirs memorable game Playing in his 500th career contest, Amir Johnson nearly willed his team to victory. The Raptors forward recorded a double-double of 25 points and 12 rebounds, connecting on 12 of his 19 shots in 50 minutes of action. He also spent the bulk of the second half guarding Durant, per his own request made after Ross exited with the hip injury. "It was tough, man," he said, asked about defending the leagues leading scorer. "Hes my height, out there shooting from half court. Theres not too much you can do but double team that." "He did a great job," Casey added. "I felt for him. Hes hurt. He was all over him, draped over him. (Durant) made a tough shot. Theres nothing Amir did wrong." The stat For the first time since Jan. 13, 2013, the Raptors had four players score 20 or more points. Along with Johnson, DeMar DeRozan led the Raptors with 33 points, hitting all but one of his 16 free throws, while Lowry added 25 and Vasquez scored 21 off the bench. The quote "We couldnt go another overtime," Durant said. "I had to live with whatever happened. You had to get out of there. I wasnt trying to go to another overtime. I pulled up for it, it looked good when it left my hands and God guided that thing to the basket, man. That was the craziest game Ive ever been a part of." A.J. Bouye Jersey . - For years William Gay kept quiet. Ronnie Harrison Jersey .J. -- Kyle Palmieri thrilled his personal rooting section with an overtime winner that sent the Anaheim Ducks to their seventh straight win. http://www.cheapjaguarsjerseysonline.com/ . Wrights first stint with Milwaukee was on a 10-day contract from March 14-23. He played in two games, averaging six points and two rebounds in 16.Its obvious Maurice Mann is no fan of feel-good movies. The script had been followed to the letter. After a successful career in the CFL, Mann won the 100th Grey Cup at home in his final game, then walked off the field for the final time as a champion. With a plot twist worthy of The Usual Suspects, the 32-year old receiver has decided to re-shoot the final scene and return to action. Hell suit up for the Toronto Argonauts Saturday night in Regina for a game against the Roughriders. How did this happen? It started out when the receiver was spotted by the staff at recent Argo home games. "They saw me at a few of the games and said Mo, you look good, you look to be in shape" Mann told TSN 1050. "I said I am in shape, coach. So when the injury bug hit, I was there and sent an e-mail or two." Head coach Scott Milanovich says it was general manager Jim Barkers brainwave to bring back the six-year veteran. "It was Jims idea a couple of weeks ago when we started having injuries," Milanovich told TSN 1050. "It made a lot of sense to me and you almost question yourself why hasnt Mo been around? Hes been great, you just hope he can keep his wind up. Hes been staying in great shape and I expect hell play well." The coach is happy with what hes seen at practice. "He looks good," continued Milanovich. "It looks like he hasnt missed a beat. He looks like hes been through training camp and hes running well, hes catching the ball well. Weve been moving him around position-wise trying to fit him in where we may need the help and thats probably been the challenge for him, is having us give him a definitive position that hes going to be in." Mann is listed on the depth chart as the x position, or the wide receiver on the boundary side. He has moved around during the week and will likely move inside on ooccasion. Jaguars Jerseys China. John Chiles, who is usually in that spot, made the trip, but is a game-time decision with a leg injury. If Chiles cant go, hell join Chad Owens, Jason Barnes and Andre Durie on the sidelines, meaning the Argos would be down four quality starting receivers. Perhaps the best person to ask about the progress of Mann is quarterback Ricky Ray, who played with the receiver not only during the Grey Cup run in Toronto, but for three seasons in Edmonton. "Weve had the injury bug, its nice to have a guy youre familiar with coming back into the lineup," said Ray. "The good thing is that he has a good basis for the terminology in the offence that were doing and obviously, we have a lot of game experience together, so for me, I feel pretty comfortable with having him out there and we have a lot of past experiences to build off of." Mann is comfortable with the offence and the terminology, but admits a lot has changed in the last year and four games. "Scott (Milanovich) is a mad scientist," joked the receiver. "Even though Marcus (offensive coordinator Marcus Brady) is running it, theres a lot of new things in terms of the offence, but its pretty similar and Im pretty comfortable already because I have a great teacher in (receivers coach) Jason Maas, who is keeping me seven hours after practice to learn everything possible about what I need to see, and where I have to be." Seeing Mann in double blue will evoke memories of the Argos 31-26 win over the Riders in Regina in 2012, the game most point to as the turning point in their championship season. On that day, the Seaside, California native hauled in seven passes for 101 yards and a touchdown. Repeating those numbers would be a long shot at best, but with his return to the lineup, Mann has demonstrated that nothing is impossible. Cheap Soccer Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Hockey Jerseys Nike NFL Jerseys China Cheap Nike MLB Jerseys China Wholesale Baseball Jerseys China Wholesale College Jerseys Cheap Jerseys From China Wholesale Jerseys Near Me Cheap Jerseys Online Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Authentic Cheap Soccer Jerseys China Cheap NCAA Jerseys Authentic Cheap Nike NBA Jerseys Cheap NHL Jerseys Authentic MLB Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Throwback Jerseys Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China ' ' '