Toronto ? Morris Peterson was shooting so well from long range, he even made one from 40 feet away.
Peterson made seven 3-pointers and scored a career-high 37 points to lead the Toronto Raptors to a 104-93 victory over the Boston Celtics on Wednesday night.
Peterson went 7-for-14 from behind the 3-point arc and topped his previous career high of 33 points set April 15, 2003 against Miami.
He made a 40-footer in the second quarter.
“One of the assistant coaches and I were talking about that because at shootaround I hit one and he was like ‘Save them for game.’ After I made that one he just shook his head,” Peterson said.
Chris Bosh added a career-high 26 points and 10 rebounds for the Raptors, who are 6-6 since trading Vince Carter to New Jersey on Dec 17. Peterson became the starting shooting guard after the Carter trade, and he’s even taken over Carter’s old locker. The five-year veteran had 21 points in the first half, including five of Toronto’s 10 3-pointers.
“My confidence is definitely higher,” Peterson said. “I’ve been coming in here early and getting in some work.”
Paul Pierce had 23 points for the Celtics, who have lost seven straight road games.
Boston never led after the first quarter.
“They made big shots, and they deserved to win,” Boston coach Doc Rivers said. “I thought they really outplayed us.”
Bosh’s previous career high for points was 25 set Jan 3, 2005. The second-year forward has recorded five straight double-doubles.
Peterson’s 3-pointer gave Toronto a 92-80 lead with 8:50 left, and his running layup and 3-pointer made it 104-91 with 1:50 left.
He tried for another 3-pointer with the game in hand, but Pierce fouled him on the play although no call was made.
Notes: Peterson crashed into a couple of fans while diving for a loose ball in the quarter, spilling beer on a man wearing leather pants. … Toronto improved to 4-1 on the homestand and won for the seventh time in its last eight home contests. … Ricky Davis had 22 points for Boston. Toronto’s Jalen Rose had just four points in 14 minutes.
