36-year-old right-hander earned his second NL

TORONTO -- It was a game Dwane Casey figures the Toronto Raptors lose two months ago. Reeling from an 18-3 run by the Brooklyn Nets to start the second half, Toronto was down 10 points against a team looking to win its season-high sixth straight game. But rather than rollover, the Raptors fought back, showed what their head coach called newfound "mental toughness" and coasted to a comfortable 96-80 victory before a sellout crowd of 19,800 at Air Canada Centre. "I think our guys showed mental toughness and won a slug out game which I dont know if we could have won a few months ago, no less last year," Casey said of the Raptors second straight win, which gave them a four-game lead over the Nets atop the NBAs Atlantic Division. "Its a testament to our guys mental growth and mental toughness to win a game like that." After Brooklyn built its biggest lead of the night at 10 points at the midway mark of the third quarter, the Raptors went on a 28-5 run over the next 10:33 to secure their seventh win in their last nine games. After 35 games, the Raptors are 18-17. At this point last season, Toronto was 13-22. "Guys are growing up," Casey said when asked to explain the difference in the Raptors this season from last. "Theyre getting tired of me preaching physicality, dont get knocked down in a street fight." Leading the way for the Raptors was DeMar DeRozan, who poured in a game-high 26 points. Terrence Ross added 14 points for the Raptors while Patrick Patterson had 14 points and 12 rebounds. The Raptors took a 47-42 lead into the halftime break on the strength of 11 first-half points from Ross, who hit half of Torontos six three-pointers in the opening 24 minutes. Toronto, which shot an anaemic 38.6 per cent from the field in the first half, led by as many as 13 points in the second quarter but the Nets continued to fight back. But then the visitors took over the game -- and silenced the boisterous crowd celebrating Drake Night in honour of the hometown rapper and Raptors global ambassador -- before Toronto regained control. After Brooklyns Shaun Livingston hit a six-foot jump shot to restore the Nets 10-point lead with 4:54 to go in the quarter, the Raptors scored 16 of the final 18 points to close it out. DeRozan scored the final seven points of the third quarter, capping it with a 25-foot three-pointer. The Raptors then went on a 10-1 run to open the fourth quarter and put the game away. "We stayed patient. We knew they were going to make a run, especially in the second half," DeRozan said. "We stayed disciplined, understood we had to get stops, rebound the ball and push it. "If Ive got to step up to win, Im going to do as much as I can." In addition to praising the "big time" performance by DeRozan, Casey also lauded the contributions of Patterson and John Salmons -- who came over as part of the trade for Rudy Gay -- to the teams toughness. The Raptors win ended a five-game win streak for Brooklyn (15-22). "Well, it was an important game," said Toronto guard Kyle Lowry, who had 12 points. "Every game we play is important. We cant take any game for granted. "It was really important with them being a divisional team and them playing really well now. We needed to get this win for our confidence." The Raptors close out their three-game homestand against the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday night. Wholesale Shoes From China . Bring on Freddy Garcia. The well-travelled 36-year-old right-hander earned his second NL victory since 2007, and his first since he joined the Atlanta Braves last month, pitching six innings to help beat Miami 6-1 Thursday. Replica Shoes Wholesale China . He did one better Sunday by holing out a pitching wedge from 142 yards for eagle, capping a remarkable 28 on the back nine to win The Championship at Laguna National. http://www.wholesaleshoes.us.org/ . Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane wanted to stay in Chicago and the Blackhawks wanted to keep the high-scoring forwards in the only NHL uniform they have ever known. Shoes Wholesale China Market . The 10-horse field of 3-year-old pacers will leave the starting gate at approximately 10:14pm et. Co-owned and trained by David Menary, Hes Watching will be driven by Tim Tetrick and is the 5-1 fourth selection in the field. Cheap Shoes China Wholesale . Szabados joined the Southern Professional Hockey League team last week. The 27-year-old goaltender from Edmonton backstopped the Canadian womens hockey team to Olympic gold Feb.VANCOUVER -- Terry Dunfield is not ready to call it a career. The veteran Major League Soccer and Canadian international midfielder is training with the Vancouver Whitecaps as he recuperates from a knee injury and seeks another team. "At the minute, its just training for a few weeks," Dunfield said after a practice Friday at B.C. Place Stadium. "Im just getting over a meniscus injury. Ive made it through the first week, and the body feels good." Dunfield, a 31-year-old Vancouver native, was released from Toronto FC in June. He suffered the injury while training with Toronto prior to being waived through MLS and becoming a free agent. "After two or three weeks, Ill see what my options are and then sort of re-assess from there," he said. "But at the minute, Im no good to anyone when Im not fit." Dunfield said he has received "one or two offers" from MLS clubs but is waiting until he is healthy to make a commitment.dddddddddddd He plans to talk to the Whitecaps, for whom he played the first half of their 2011 expansion season before being traded to Toronto. But Vancouver coach Martin Rennie has all but ruled out signing him. Dunfield made 56 combined appearances for Toronto in MLS league play, CONCACAF Champions League, and the Amway Canadian Championship, while producing six goals for the Reds. He had one goal and three assists in 12 MLS games with the Whitecaps in 2011. A former Manchester City youth player, he played in England before joining the Whitecaps in a second-tier circuit in 2010. He says he wants to make sure that he can find "the right fit" if another team signs him. "I cant wait to get back out there and make up for lost time -- both at the club level and for Canada," said Dunfield. But he has a tight deadline when it comes to finding employment. MLS clubs must freeze their rosters by Sept. 13. ' ' '