The Toronto Raptors and the New York Knicks will both be looking to return to winning ways when they go head-to-head at the Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday morning.
The home side were beaten for the second straight game in their defeat to the Dallas Mavericks last time out, while their visitors fell to a shock defeat against the Detroit Pistons.
Match preview
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After kicking off their five-game homestretch with consecutive wins over the Miami Heat and the Indiana Pacers, the Raptors fell to their heaviest defeat of the season against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday before facing off against the Mavericks two days later.
Despite making the same number of field goals as their opponents in the first half (21), Darko Rajakovic's men went into the interval trailing by 16 points, largely due to their disparity from the free-throw line which formed the basis for a 125-118 defeat.
In an otherwise rough outing for the Raptors, youngsters Gradey Dick and Scottie Barnes combined for an impressive 46 points, 12 rebounds and 15 assists to offer a glimmer of hope going forward.
The Raptors have now been beaten in 17 of their 24 outings this term to sit 12th in the Eastern Conference standings, but only the Washington Wizards have lost more matches in the entire division (18).
Only two of the Raptors' seven victories this term have come in home matches, and Tuesday's hosts will need to get going in front of their fans to avoid losing further ground on the teams in firm contention for the playoffs.
Following defeats in each of their last four matches against their next opponents, giving up over 131 points per game, the Raptors have it all to do as they look to avoid suffering three defeats in a row for the first time since November 17.
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Nailed on as huge favourites to come out on top off the back of four straight victories, the New York Knicks were left red-faced at the sound of the final buzzer in Sunday's meeting against the Detroit Pistons.
Recording one of their lowest-scoring first quarters of the season, Tom Thibodeau's men had a 16-point deficit to make up after 12 minutes, and despite cutting the gap to two early in the fourth quarter, they were outclassed in the final stages of the contest.
Due to the absence of Karl-Anthony Towns, Jalen Brunson was saddled with the majority of the offensive burden, but his 31-point, 10-assist double-double was unable to get the Knicks over the line.
Dropping to a 14-9 record for the season, the Knicks have missed out on the opportunity to leapfrog the Orlando Magic into third place in the East and remain fourth, albeit having played the fewest games in the top five.
Having not lost consecutive matches since early November, the Knicks will back themselves to get back to winning ways on the road before returning to their home court to face off against a resurgent Atlanta Hawks side.
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Team News
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Mitchell Robinson is still nursing an ankle problem and remains unavailable for the New York Knicks, while fellow center Karl-Anthony Towns is out with a knee injury.
Kevin McCullar Jr and Cameron Payne also miss out for the away side with knee and elbow problems respectively, but Precious Achiuwa is back available from a hamstring injury.
In the absence of Towns, 26-year-old Jericho Sims is expected to retain his place in the starting lineup, although Achiuwa could also be deployed at the five.
DJ Carton (ankle) and Immanuel Quickley (elbow) are both set to miss out for the Raptors, but Bruce Brown could be back in time to feature in Tuesday's clash.
Finishing just two rebounds short of a second triple-double of the season last time out, Scottie Barnes will be looking to deliver the goods for the home side once again.
Toronto Raptors possible starting five:
Barnes, Dick; Agbaji, Barrett; Poeltl
New York Knicks possible starting five:
Brunson, Hart; Bridges, Anunoby; Sims
We say: Knicks to win by 4+ points
Only five teams have given up more points per game this term than the Raptors (117.4), while only five teams have scored more points per game than the Knicks (118).
Nonetheless, we are anticipating a close contest with the away side just about coming out on top in the end.
Adepoju Marvellous
