Siakam, Lowry shine as Raptors even series with Celtics
The Toronto Raptors tied their second-round series against the Boston Celtics at two games apiece with a 100-93 victory Saturday evening.
Pascal Siakam broke out of an offensive slump with 23 points and 11 rebounds, while Kyle Lowry added 20 points, 11 boards, seven assists, two steals, and two blocks in the win.
"I've played 80-something minutes in two games," Lowry said postgame, according to TSN's Josh Lewenberg. "Continue to keep pushing. We know how tough those guys are, but we've just got to keep playing basketball."
Toronto big man Serge Ibaka led reserve players with 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting, including a perfect 4-of-4 mark from deep.
The Raptors rediscovered their 3-point stroke after going cold from downtown in the first two games of the series. Third-year guard Fred VanVleet led Toronto's outside attack with five of the team's 17 triples.
Raptors head coach Nick Nurse earned his 22nd postseason victory, surpassing Dwane Casey as the franchise leader.
Meanwhile, Boston couldn't establish any rhythm from beyond the arc, connecting on just 7-of-35 attempts in Game 4.
Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 24 points, nine boards, and three assists. It was a rough night for his running mate Jaylen Brown, who finished with 14 points on 4-of-18 shooting.
"We gotta be ready to fight (in Game 5)," Brown said, according to A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston. "Shots just didn't go down for me. I have to knock down shots, period. It's the playoffs. It's time to play. Not too much more talking that needs to be done. I have to play better."
Game 5 is scheduled for Monday at 6:30 p.m. ET.