Lackluster Mavs fall hard at Toronto

TORONTO – The Mavericks didn’t give up a lead this time. They never had one.

Dallas native Chris Bosh led the balanced Raptors to a wire-to-wire 92-76 victory Wednesday night at the Air Canada Centre. The sluggish Mavs (14-9) had their two-game winning streak snapped in the finale of a quick two-game road trip. Dallas had also won eight straight against Toronto.

The Mavs were without point guard Devin Harris, who came down with a stomach virus the night before. The Raptors had little sympathy. Toronto completed a road-home back-to-back sweep without point guard TJ Ford, who took a violent fall in Tuesday’s win at Atlanta.

Bosh led five Raptors in double figures with 17 points. Toronto (13-10) looked a step quicker from the start, jumping out to an early 5-0 edge that forced a timeout from Avery Johnson.

The Mavs appeared to wake up momentarily before their defense was sliced up in the second quarter. The Raptors were a picture of ball movement and balance, as Toronto took an 18-point lead (54-36) into the half.

Nine Raptors scored in the second quarter – none more than seven points – as Toronto outscored Dallas 33-19. Dirk Nowitzki was the only Maverick in sync offensively, with 11 points and five assists at the break, but the reigning MVP couldn’t do it alone.