TORONTO (AP) -Chris Bosh had 27 points, Jose Calderon had 22 points and 12 assists and the Toronto Raptors beat the New Jersey Nets, who were playing without Jason Kidd, 109-91 on Wednesday night.
The Nets seemed on the verge of a blockbuster trade that would send Kidd to Dallas, and the All-Star point guard was not around for this game.
Life without Kidd did not look pretty for the Nets, who never led and trailed by as many as 30.
It’s the second time this season the Raptors have won big against the Nets, the team that eliminated them in the first round of last season’s playoffs. Toronto posted a 106-69 win at New Jersey on Nov. 2, its largest margin of victory this season.
With the Raptors running away, Toronto rookie Jamario Moon used the opportunity to warm up for his appearance in Saturday night’s dunk contest, finishing off two alley-oop passes from Calderon, then racing in for a stylish break-away slam in the third.
Moon finished with 15 points and Andrea Bargnani added 14 as Toronto snapped a three-game home losing streak.
Richard Jefferson and Vince Carter each had 15 and Darrell Armstrong and Stromile Swift both had 12 for the Nets, whose three-game winning streak came to an end.
With Kidd, Malik Allen and Antoine Wright all inactive and center Jamaal Magloire at home in New Jersey, the Nets had just nine players available.
Short-staffed and subdued, the Nets were out of this one quickly, missing five of their first six shots and calling timeout after falling behind 9-2 at 8:16 of the first. Behind 10 points from Bosh, Toronto opened a 30-17 lead after 12 minutes.
The Nets rallied in the second, cutting the deficit to 40-32 at 6:26, but the Raptors responded by closing the half with a 21-9 spurt, sparked by back-to-back steals and layups from Calderon.
Carter was called for a technical after he fouled Bargnani on a 3-pointer with 27 seconds left in the second. Calderon made the technical free throw and Bargnani drained all three of his before Calderon’s 3-pointer with one-tenth of a second left sent Toronto into the locker room with a 62-41 lead.
Toronto was without guard T.J. Ford (sprained right wrist).
Notes: Raptors coach Sam Mitchell missed his second consecutive game following the death of his father-in-law and was replaced by assistant Jay Triano, who became the first Canadian to coach an NBA team. … Toronto made 20 of its first 22 free throw attempts and finished 23-for-27 from the line. … Carter led the Nets with seven assists.
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