Sixers’ rebounding will be as important as anything in Game 7, and Raptors know it
The Sixers have out-rebounded the Raptors by a staggering 277-230 through six games with the Raptors Game 5 blowout win being the only one in which Toronto had the upper hand.
TORONTO — On the list of things that the Raptors see as keys to success in Sunday’s Game 7 vs. the 76ers, rebounding might be at the top of the list.
The Sixers have out-rebounded the Raptors by a staggering 277-230 through six games with the Raptors Game 5 blowout win being the only one in which Toronto had the upper hand (42-37).
“It’s huge," Kyle Lowry said of rebounding after practice on Saturday. “Rebounding has been a big advantage for them and we can’t let that happen. Can’t.”
It’s quite a task to ask of the Raptors against the Sixers, who are the second-best rebounding team in the playoffs, behind only the Milwaukee Bucks, who will play either the Sixers or Raptors in the Eastern Conference finals which begin on Wednesday.
Raptors coach Nick Nurse was adamant that rebounding could be the deciding factor in Sunday’s game noting that it has been an issue for his team in this series. What concerns Nurse the most is the defensive effort his team puts into getting the Sixers to take the kind of shots that the Raptors want them to take and then after all that allowing a put-back or an offensive rebound.
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“We have to be better,” Nurse said. “We have to be more physical in our blockouts, we have to be super conscious of finding bodies, running to the basket, and then we’ve got to rebound like some grown men. We’ve got to go up and grab them with two hands, and squeeze them, and hold onto them and get in a strong body position.”