TORONTO – A.J. Lawson of Brampton, Ont., came off Toronto’s bench for a career-high 32 points as the Raptors beat the Washington Wizards 119-104 on Monday.
Lawson added 12 rebounds as four Toronto players had double-doubles for the Raptors (22-43), avenging a loss to Washington on Saturday.
Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett of Mississauga, Ont., and Orlando Robinson also had double-doubles. Barnes had 14 points and 13 boards, Barrett had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Robinson had 13 points and pulled down 11 boards.
Alex Sarr, the No. 1 overall pick in last summer’s draft, had a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds for Washington (13-50). Jordan Poole also scored 16 points.
The Raptors were without a host of players as starting centre Jakob Poeltl (rest), Ochai Agbaji (left ankle sprain), Gradey Dick (right knee bone bruise), Jonathan Mogbo (broken nose), Ja’Kobe Walter (right hip flexor), Ulrich Chomche (partial proximal MCL tear) and Brandon Ingram (left ankle sprain) were all out.
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Agbaji and Dick took some shots during warm-ups, however. Head coach Darko Rajakovic said that Agbaji isn’t cleared for contact yet but the Raptors would slowly ramp him backup. Dick will be re-examined in seven days but is allowed to do spot-up shooting and attempted some straight-line running earlier Monday.
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TAKEAWAYS
Wizards: Before the game head coach Brian Keefe said Washington had to do better at rebounding against Toronto. They did not. The Wizards were outrebounded 73-56.
Raptors: Abysmal shooting in the second quarter prevented Toronto from blowing the game wide open. They only made eight of 33 field-goal attempts in the period, including 4 for 16 shooting from three-point range. The Raptors made up for that by sinking 14 of 30 field goals, including going 5 for 14 from beyond the arc, to outscore the Wizards 34-19 in the third for a 93-79 lead with a quarter remaining.
KEY MOMENT
Bilal Coulibaly went through contact for a slam dunk late in the first quarter but lost his grip on the rim, falling hard on his back. Officials reviewed the play to see if Raptors forward Jamison Battle should be charged with a flagrant foul on the play, but it was ruled an ordinary foul. Both players did not return to the game, with Battle breaking his nose on the play and Coulibaly nursing his injured back.
KEY STAT
Lawson signed a two-way deal with the Raptors organization on Dec. 11. His previous scoring high was on Dec. 23, 2023, when he had 17 points for the Dallas Mavericks in a 144-119 win over the San Antonio Spurs.
UP NEXT
Wizards: Continue their road trip with a visit to the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday.
Raptors: Finish their four-game homestand on Wednesday against the Philadelphia 76ers.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 10, 2025.
&© 2025 The Canadian Press
