OKLAHOMA CITY - Prior to Sundays game - a game no rational person expected them to be competitive in, let alone win - Raptors coach Dwane Casey spoke about his teams newfound mental toughness. Phillip Lindsay Youth Jersey . "I like the toughness factor in certain situations where last year and two years ago wed get bumped, get hit [and] wouldnt respond," Casey said an hour and a half before facing the league-best Thunder, a team that hadnt yet lost at home. "Weve grown up from that standpoint and learning how to win is huge." To suggest that Casey was foreshadowing is giving him too much credit. He couldnt have known or genuinely expected what was about to happen. No one did. But he was on to something. This is a different Raptors team than the one Casey was referring to, the one that would cower from adversity in years past. They were supposed to go winless on this exceptionally difficult Western Conference road swing. Instead, theyve won their first two games. “Im seeing it growing," Casey said of his teams resiliency after shocking the hosting Thunder, 104-98, winning four straight on the road for the first time since 2002. "It was one of those things where our guys fought through it and we could have folded or packed it in but they stuck with it and stuck together most of all and didnt fall apart." He called it their best win of the season, which is a given. To take it one step further, it was the Raptors most impressive victory of the three-year Casey era and for all the criticism Torontos coach takes, he had his fingerprints all over it. Casey earned his pay check Sunday evening. He didnt sit down, he didnt relax. He couldnt, not against this team. The Raptors got off to a quick start but withstood the inevitable counterpunch, they rose above spotty officiating and stood their ground when they needed to the most. Through it all Casey was manic on the sidelines. "Sit down Coach," a Thunder fan behind the Raptors bench kept yelling. He didnt. The Raptors were coming off an impressive win in Dallas, defeating a Mavericks team that was 11-2 at home on Friday. The Thunder, winners of nine straight and 17 of 18 overall, were perfect in 13 games at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Toronto threw the first punch and led by six at the break. They were "the aggressor," as Casey puts it, and they paid for it. The Thunder had attempted 22 free throws at the half, making them all, while Toronto shot just 10. That trend continued into the third when, finally the lopsided officiating began to seep into the psyche of a young team that has never been known for their mental resolve. A nine-point lead early in the third quarter turned into a nine-point deficit going into a fourth. Collectively Raptors fans thought, here we go again. The Thunder were fighting back - as we expected - and the Raptors couldnt catch a break from the officials. They missed 17 of 19 field goal attempts to end the frame. Thats when something seemed different. They didnt run, they didnt hide, they hit right back. For that, Casey and his players unanimously credited the work of veteran newcomer John Salmons. "I thought John Salmons maturity came through," Casey said of the reserve forward, who scored nine of his 14 playing the entire fourth quarter. "He has a settling effect when hes in the game and it helps us. It rubs off on DeMar and Terrence. He doesnt get rattled." "John Salmons, I mean give him the game ball, offensively and defensively," added Kyle Lowry. "Just, here, take the ball. He was a big-time player tonight." For the second straight game Salmons came up big when it mattered most. On Friday he slowed down Monta Ellis and two days later he was a big part of the brigade that frustrated Kevin Durant, holding him to 24 points on 5-of-16 shooting, 1-of-6 in the fourth, and forcing his six turnovers. A 12-year vet, Salmons was an afterthought in the seven-player deal that sent Rudy Gay to Sacramento earlier this month. He was - and probably is - a temporary Raptor, a contract that can be moved at the deadline or easily bought out in the offseason. A day after the trade was finalized, he stood in front of the local media without much in the way of emotion or excitement, complaining about being tired from the trip. He has brought more to this team than anyone could have expected. "Im not a rah-rah guy at all but Ive been around for a long time," he said. "Ive experienced a lot so I just try to give my advice when I can." Taking the lead of Salmons, his teammates remained even-keeled when things looked to be going south. Nobody panicked. They executed and made good decisions, the right plays down the stretch. "Weve done a great job of just everyone cheering for each other, supporting each other and nobodys getting their head down," said Lowry, who continues to play the best basketball of his career, leading the team with 22 points and nine assists on Sunday. "Everyones focusing on winning the game no matter how bleak it looks." DeRozan played well, scoring 17 points against a tough defender in Thabo Sefolosha, someone who has given him fits in the past and once again, Amir Johnson was the unsung hero. Johnson - who recorded a double-double of 17 points and 13 rebounds - made some crucial defensive plays down the stretch, switching off on Durant and swatting a Russell Westbrook floater in the final two minutes of the game. "I cant [say enough], theres too much to say about him," Lowry said, or attempted to say about Johnson. "Hes just an unbelievable player. He had his struggles (early in the season) but we all said hell be alright once he finds his groove. And look at him, hes playing unbelievable. He guarded Kevin Durant as tough as he did and the other night he guarded Dirk (Nowitzki) as tough as he did. You just have to tip your hat to him." Back atop the Atlantic Division, the Raptors play their final game before a three-day Christmas break in San Antonio on the second night of a back-to-back Monday. The Spurs have the third-best record in the West and are 9-3 at home. The Raptors are not supposed to win. Care to bet against them? Terrell Davis Broncos Jersey . The cause of his death is as of yet undetermined, but police said foul play is not suspected. Custom Denver Broncos Jerseys .C. - The Carolina Hurricanes hope they now have the leadership tandem in place to turn the franchise around. http://www.thebroncosstoreonline.com/Youth-dalton-risner-broncos-jerseys/ .ca has you covered for whos in, whos out and what to expect from all 30 teams.LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Jordan Hill did it at both ends of the court Sunday night against the Orlando Magic, putting together his own personal highlight reel in a season during which there havent been many of those for himself or the Los Angeles Lakers. Hill had a career-high 28 points along with 13 rebounds in his first start in over nine weeks and the Lakers beat Orlando 103-94, sending the Magic to their ninth straight loss. "Youve got to be ready because you never know when your number will be called to step in there in the starting lineup," said Hill, who got the news that he would start from coach Mike DAntoni at the morning shootaround. "Just went out there and played hard, playing aggressively and played my game. I felt like nobody could stop me. "My mindset out there was that nobody could keep me off the offensive boards and nobody could keep me from the rim." Nick Young scored 26 points off the bench, helping the Lakers end a four-game skid. Pau Gasol had six points in 18 minutes, and sat out the second half after feeling nauseous and dizzy. A Lakers spokesperson said after the game that Gasol would spend the night in a hospital for observation. Steve Nash, who had 11 assists in 19 minutes off the bench Friday night against Washington after missing the previous 15 games because of chronic nerve damage in his back, did not play. The 40-year-old two-time MVP has been limited to just 11 games all season because of his condition. Xavier Henry, who was back in the lineup for just nine games after missing 28 because of a bone bruise on his right knee, was sidelined again after tearing a ligament in his left wrist in the loss to the Wizards. He will be re-examined Monday. The Lakers (23-46) have to go no worse than 8-5 the rest of the way to avoid tying the 1974-75 squad for the worst record since the franchise relocated from Minneapolis to Los Angeles in 1960-61. But eight games on their remaining schedule are against teams that currently are over .500. "Were playing for pride," Hill said. "I mean, were still the Lakers. Were definitely one of the top organizations in the league, if not the best. So we have to take a stand for ourselves. We cant quit and weve got to keep fighting." Orlando point guard Victor Oladipo, the second overall pick in the draft, had 21 points and 10 assists in his eighth career start while Jameer Nelson missed his third straight game with a sore left knee. Aaron Afflalo scored 18 points for the Magic, one night after they lost 89-88 at Utah on a 3-pointer by Trey Burke with 1. Dennis Smith Jersey. 6 seconds remaining. "They had some bigs that were playing extremely aggressive at the rim," Orlando coach Jacque Vaughn said. "I think Hill had an impact on the game with his energy and effort. It was through dunks, offensive rebounds, rolling to the rim and putting the ball back in. He gave his team some edge tonight." The Magic have lost 23 of their last 24 road games — the only exception a 101-90 win against Philadelphia on Feb. 26. "Were not building for next year yet," Vaughn said. "Weve still got some games to go, but what I do see is our guys getting better." The Lakers led throughout the second half, but never led by double digits. Orlando got as close as 83-80 on a 15-footer by Afflalo, but the Lakers converted 13 of 14 free throws over the final 5:18 to put it away. Youngs 3-pointer was their only field goal during the final 8 minutes. Hill, making his first start since Jan. 17, paced Los Angeles to a 55-48 halftime lead with 14 points and six rebounds. The Lakers converted seven Orlando turnovers into nine points during the first 5:03 and took a 25-17 lead on a four-point play by Young, his franchise-record fifth of the season and eighth by the team — also a franchise best. "Rest definitely helped a lot," said Hill, who missed six games earlier this month because of a sore right knee. "I felt like I could jump over the gym, jump over anything. I just felt more mobile and was able to move quicker. I was definitely able to get up and get rebounds and move my feet on defence." NOTES: Orlando faced Los Angeles in the NBA finals just five years ago, losing in five games. But the Magic are 39-113 since the start of last season after firing Stan Van Gundy and trading three-time Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard to the Lakers — and are one of only four teams that have a worse record than the Lakers this season. ... A loss Tuesday night at home against Portland would give Orlando two double-digit losing streaks in the same season for the third time in the franchises 25-year history. It also happened last season and in 2003-04. The Magic have seven of those streaks altogether. ... The Lakers failed to sell out for the sixth time. ... The Magic fell to 0-30 on the road when trailing after three quarters. ... This was the Magics final road game against Western Conference opponents. They were 0-15. ... The Magic, who came in 0-33 when they get outrebounded, won the battle of the boards 46-34. ' ' '