Raptors spoil Philly’s playoff party again with dominant Game 5 win

Things have officially gotten interesting between the Toronto Raptors and Philadelphia 76ers.

After falling into a 3-0 hole that no team in NBA history has ever recovered from, the Raptors have now trimmed the deficit in their first-round series to 3-2 after a 103-88 win in Game 5 at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia on Monday.

The Raptors only led 29-27 after the first quarter, but extended that lead to 13 points by the half thanks to a dominant defensive performance in a second quarter in which they outscored the 76ers 25-14.

The scoring was pretty spread out for Toronto in this one. Pascal Siakam led the way with 23 points on 10-for-17 shooting from the field, adding 10 rebounds for the double-double.

Siakam converts the tough layup to give the Raptors a 14 point lead! pic.twitter.com/Ox1RCc22KQ

— NBA Canada (@NBACanada) April 26, 2022

Four other Raptors — Precious Achiuwa, O.G. Anunoby, Gary Trent Jr., and Scottie Barnes — also had double-digit points on the night.

Nick Nurse on Precious Achiuwa's performance for the #Raptors tonight:
"He's really playing well. He's got a huge assignment for a lot of the game… we were trying to match him minutes there with Embiid for the second half. He's made some really decisive offensive moves."

— Adam Laskaris (@adam_la2karis) April 26, 2022

Nick Nurse on if the #Raptors have taken back momentum in the series:
"I mean, maybe, but it doesn't really matter. The ball goes up on Thursday, everybody's got to fight like heck."

— Adam Laskaris (@adam_la2karis) April 26, 2022

Fred VanVleet did not play on Monday after leaving late in the first half of Game 4 on Saturday with a hip injury.

Joel Embiid led the Sixers with 20 points on 7-for-15 shooting to go along with 11 rebounds. James Harden struggled, finishing with 15 points on 4-for-11 shooting.

Game 6 will be played at 7 pm ET/4 pm PT at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on Thursday.

More to come…