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TORONTO - Once he got going, no one could calm Jonas Valanciunas down, despite Kyle Lowrys best efforts. As Valanciunas was whistled for a rare technical toward the end of the third quarter - a result of waving his hand at an official after being called for a foul - Lowry pulled the Raptors sophomore aside, corralling him by his jersey and patting him on the back. "Youve got to be smart in certain situations," Lowry told the young centre. "I just tried to say look, you cant waste your money." "Yeah, he was trying to calm me down," Valanciunas said of the conversation with his point guard, speaking with a mischievous look on his face following the Raptors 98-91 win over the Cavaliers. "That technical foul cost me, so I feel bad now." He shouldnt. The tech will cost Valanciunas a small fraction of his next paycheque but the unbridled emotion he played with in the second half of Fridays game was the driving force of Torontos rapid turnaround. Valanciunas, like the rest of his team, got off to an ugly start. The Raptors were fortunate to be down by only five going into the break, scoring just 39 points in the first half and shooting 33 per cent from the field. For the third straight game coming out of the All-Star break, Valanciunas got a quick hook in the first quarter. The seven-footer has been strangely quiet of late, averaging under six points in four games entering Fridays contest. His minutes have been down, as hes battled growing pains on the defensive end. After being sent to the bench midway through the opening quarter, he sat for around 12 minutes of game time before re-entering. Somewhere, somehow, someone lit a fire under the sophomore and not only did it spark him, it ignited the whole team. Valanciunas was a possessed man coming out of the halftime break. He was aggressive on defence, manic on the boards and dominant down low. He ran the floor with a purpose, worked to establish position, then demanded the ball. As he turned to face up Clevelands Tyler Zeller midway through the third, he pump faked - not once, but twice - took the contact and drained the jumper. Before completing the three-point play, he pumped his fist in the air and yelled out to the crowd, or the Cavs, or his teammates, or whoever was listening. His face was as red as the logo at centre court. He meant business. "Hes going to have ups and downs but tonight he was intense," Lowry said of Valanciunas, who had 10 points and four rebounds in the third quarter, finishing the game with 18 points and eight boards. "He really kind of carried us with his intensity and his passion and fire tonight." The 21-year-olds inspired play lifted the Raptors in what turned out to be a game-deciding third quarter. Toronto scored 37 points in the frame - two fewer than its first-half total - and shot 70 per cent, turning a five-point deficit at intermission into an 11-point advantage going into the fourth. "Hes our enforcer in the paint," said Amir Johnson, who returned to the starting lineup Friday after coming off the bench in his two previous outings, nursing an ankle injury. "When he gets going, everybody else plays good and that just gets everybody open shots when hes scoring in the paint." Johnson also came to life in the second half, the two bigs even hooked up on an alley-oop lob - from Johnson to Valanciunas - late in game. "We had to give our bigs a wakeup call," Dwane Casey said. "They turned it around in the second half. We reminded them, theres more to the game than the offensive end." "You can do a lot of different things other than make shots," he continued, "and I thought the second half, Amir Johnson and JV worked at it and got it done." Although Valanciunas helped turn the game, the best Raptor on the night - from start to finish - was fellow sophomore Terrence Ross, hands down. Ross scored a team-high 20 points, shooting 9-for-18, but his most important contribution was on the defensive end, where he went toe-to-toe with All-Star Game MVP Kyrie Irving. When the game began, Ross was assigned to check former Raptor Jarrett Jack while Lowry defended Irving. Early in the first quarter, there was a switch and Ross ended up on the Cavs point guard and leading scorer. It stuck for the rest of the evening, and Ross did not disappoint. The Raptors forward used his length and athleticism to frustrate Irving, forcing him to launch tough perimeter jumpers, keeping him out of the paint and holding him to 3-of-16 shooting. "He can score in a lot of different ways [and] get his teammates involved," Ross said of Irving, who ended up with 17 points and nine assists for Cleveland. "So if you slow him down, you slow the team down." "He had to chase [Irving] everywhere," Johnson said of Ross. "He chased him off screens, he didnt quit on plays and thats how you have to play a guy like that. [Irvings] so crafty and hes always moving so you just have to keep a body on him and stay in front of him. [Ross] did a great job." It was Canada Basketball Night at the Air Canada Centre Friday, as local product and first overall pick Anthony Bennett made his NBA debut in Toronto. Bennett, who continues to improve after a slow start to the season, knocked down his first two shots and finished with nine points in 15 minute of action while fellow Canadian Tristan Thompson scored 13 to go along with nine boards. In snapping Clevelands six-game winning streak, the Raptors picked up their 30th win of the campaign, doing so in just 55 games. It took them 78 contests to reach the 30-win mark a year ago. Cheap White Sox Jerseys Authentic . Dirk Nowitzki scored 25 points, Shawn Marion had 22 and the Mavericks beat undermanned Philadelphia 124-112 Friday night, handing the 76ers their 10th straight loss. Cheap Robin Ventura Jersey . On Sunday, hell attempt to become the youngest driver to win a NASCAR Nationwide race on Iowas short track. The 20-year-old Blaney wont be the only kid pushing a podium finish. http://www.cheapwhitesoxjerseys.com/.1 Sam Stosur will meet Germanys second-ranked player Andrea Petkovic in the opening match of the Fed Cup World Group semifinal. Cheap Bobby Jenks Jersey . The 33-year-old Spaniard, who held the lead since the second round, turned in a solid final round that featured six birdies and two bogeys to finish on 22-under 266. The victory is Garcias first this year with his last win coming at the Johor Open, an Asian Tour event in Malaysia last December. Cheap Bill Melton Jersey . Osasunas Alvaro Cejudo drove the ball onto the crossbar in the fifth minute and his team squandered several long-range strikes before he was denied one-on-one by goalkeeper Jaime Jimenez in the 50th.DENVER -- The San Diego Padres are picking their spots with Carlos Quentin as they ease him back into action following his return from a knee injury that sidelined him for the first six weeks of the season. He came through in a tough spot Saturday night. Seth Smith homered against his former team early, Quentin added a two-run, pinch-hit home run, and the San Diego Padres hung on to beat the Colorado Rockies 8-5 Saturday night. "When you come back, youre looking to get hits to put yourself in a nice rhythm out there," Quentin said. "Looking to be hitting in the middle of the lineup, you want to drive the ball and it was nice to get that first ball driven, first home run out of the way." San Diego staked Robbie Erlin (3-4) to a 6-1 lead by roughing up previously unbeaten Jordan Lyles (5-1), who walked a career-high six batters in a season-low 3 1-3 inning outing. The Rockies got an early home run from Troy Tulowitzki and chipped away at the Padres lead, pulling to within a run on Carlos Gonzalezs two-run double in the sixth inning. Quentin rebuilt the cushion in the seventh. Activated this week after spending the first six weeks of the season on the disabled list because of a left knee bone contusion, Quentin batted for reliever Nick Vincent and followed Yasmani Grandals two-out single with a drive off reliever Chris Martin that sailed into the left field bleachers for his first home run of the season. "Youre always trying to add on regardless of where you are but especially here at Coors," Smith said. "A crooked number is waiting every inning, so youve got to try to hold them down and expand the lead any chance you get. Thats why Carlos homer was really big." Quentin swung through a first pitch fastball from Martin, but he connected when the reliever came back with another. "It felt good to get some runs on the board, give us that cushion," Quentin said. "The Rockies were charging. Everybody knows they can swing the bat. Theyve shown it all year. I was fortunate enough to put a good swing on the ball and help slow that momentum." Erlin, who entered hitless in 11 at-bats over his eight previous games, singled twice, inncluding an RBI single in the third inning that capped three consecutive two-run innings by the Padres.dddddddddddd On the mound, Erlin allowed four runs on nine hits in five innings. He struck out two and walked none and benefited from a defence that turned five double plays, including four in the first five innings. Huston Street, also a former Rockie, got three outs for his 13th save in as many opportunities. Lyles, who saw his ERA increase to 3.50 from 2.66, had control problems from the outset. He issued first-inning walks to Everth Cabrera and Smith before giving up a two-two-run double to Yonder Alonso. "I just didnt throw enough strikes," Lyles said. "Too many balls, too many strikes. Im not going to be successful like that. You cant put guys on base that many times. Its just one of those things you learn from. Turn the corner and get better from it." Tulowitzki, who had three hits, answered in the bottom of the first with his NL-leading 12th homer of the season. But Smith, who played for the Rockies from 2007-11, made it 4-1 San Diego in the second. One out after Chris Denorfia doubled, Smith drove a 1-1 offering from Lyles over the centre field fence for his fourth home run of the season. The Rockies pulled to 6-3 on Gonzalezs sacrifice fly in the fourth and Jordan Pachecos RBI single in the fifth. "Just a tough night," Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. "We fought back. I think everyone thought wed end up winning that game but we came up short." NOTES: San Diego right-handed reliever Donn Roach (1-0) will start Sundays series finale against the Rockies in place of Andrew Cashner, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list because of soreness in his pitching (right) elbow. Roach be opposed by Colorados Juan Nicasio (4-2). ... The Padres recalled RHP Kevin Quackenbush from Triple-A El Paso to fill Cashners roster spot. ... Lyles previous career high for walks was five against Boston on July 3, 2011, while with Houston. ... The pinch homer was the fourth of Quentins career and the fifth by a Padre this season, most in the majors. ... Weiss said Brandon Barnes was unavailable Saturday because of a stomach illness. 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