Toronto ? Chris Bosh made Chris Webber look bad.
Bosh had 23 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Toronto Raptors to 96-93 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night.
The 20-year-old repeatedly shot jumpers over Webber or beat him off the dribble. Webber, still recovering from major knee surgery, fouled out with 2:38 left. He finished 6-for-21 from the field for 13 points, while Bosh went 11-for-16.
“He definitely got the best of me,” Webber said. “He had a good game. I couldn’t hit anything. He was hitting everything. He’s going to be a really good player.”
Bosh recorded the first back-to-back 20-point games of his career. The second-year forward tied a career-high with 25 points in Toronto’s victory over Orlando on Monday.
The Raptors are 6-0 when Bosh scores at least 20 points, and 4-5 since trading Vince Carter to New Jersey Nets on Dec. 17. Toronto is hoping to rebuild around Bosh, who has struggled at times this season.
“This definitely builds my confidence. Chris Webber is a real good player,” Bosh said. “He was giving me a lot of trouble because he’s real crafty down in the post, but my jump shot was hitting today. If I’m not hitting my jump shot there’s no telling what happens.”
Jalen Rose had 20 points off the bench for the Raptors, who have won five straight at home.
Mike Bibby had a season-high 32 points for the Kings, who had won of eight of their previous nine road games. Sacramento played in New York the night before.
Toronto rookie center Rafael Araujo had a career-high 14 rebounds, including nine in nine minutes of the third quarter. Araujo started a 15-3 run with a tip in, and Bosh blew by Webber for a dunk to give Toronto a 15-point lead.
Bosh’s fadeaway jumper made it an 18-point lead with 1:50 left in the third, but Sacramento cut the lead to three on Webber’s jumper and Bibby’s free throw with 3:00 left.
After Webber fouled out, Bosh made a jumper over Brad Miller to give Toronto a seven-point lead with 2:18 remaining. Bosh’s free throw made it 94-88 with 1:19 left, and he grabbed a key rebound after Miller’s miss with less than a minute left.
Bosh missed two free throws with 13.2 seconds remaining, but Eric Williams made two with 4.4 seconds left.
Rose said Bosh’s jumper was the difference.
“For a big man, he has a real good jump shot from 15 feet. They weren’t able to check that,” Rose said. “And he’s been rebounding a lot better. The sky is the limit for him as long as he keeps getting stronger. It’s exciting to see him progress.”
Notes: Carter is averaging 24 points in his first five games with New Jersey — 8.1 points more than he averaged in Toronto. “Vince asked to be traded and maybe once that happened, maybe his heart wasn’t totally committed to be being a Toronto Raptor,” Toronto coach Sam Mitchell said. … The Raptors will be collecting donations to help tsunami victims during games Friday and Sunday. Rose will be donating $1,000 for every point he scores in Friday’s game. … Miller had 19 rebounds and 14 points.
