WASHINGTON -- It took the Toronto Raptors a little while to get going in their first game since the All-Star break. Custom Tampa Bay Lightning Jersey . Guard Kyle Lowry eventually provided a jump start. Lowry had 24 points and 10 assists as the Raptors broke open a close game in the third quarter and held on for a 103-93 win over the Washington Wizards on Tuesday night. "He took the game over in the middle of the third quarter and willed us to a win," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. Leading by six at halftime, the Atlantic Division leading Raptors pushed the lead to 17 as DeMar DeRozans driving layup started a 15-2 run midway through the third quarter. Lowry scored nine of the 15 points with a variety of shots, including a driving lay-up, a short fall-away jumper and a corner 3-pointer that made it 78-61 late in the period. He played the entire 12 minutes scored 14 points in the quarter. "I just was getting more looks, trying to attack a little more" said Lowry, who wasnt named an All-Star, but came in averaging 16.7 points 7.6 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game. "That first game out of the break is always tough and I didnt want to let that be an excuse for us to lose the game." Five Raptors joined Lowry in double figures, including Amir Johnson, who returned after missing two games with a sore right ankle. He scored 14 points. The Raptors, who have won three straight, also got 14 from Greivis Vasquez and DeRozan, who addressed the team before the game. "Just (told) everybody to be focused," DeRozan said. "Each and every single game matters from here on out especially if we want to do something special. We cant take any nights off. These thirty games are going to be big and we have to start tonight." The Raptors led by as many as 20 midway through the fourth quarter, before being held without a field goal for the final 7:36. The Wizards pulled to within 99-90 on a 3-pointer by Martell Webster with 2:04 left. Following a steal, Nenes layup made it 99-92. After John Wall collected a steal, Nene made one of two free throws with 1:32 left, but Lowry hit a pair of free throws, however, to make it 101-93 with 1:02 left. Toronto shot 57 per cent from the field (42-of-74) for the game, and finished with 60 points inside. "We had trouble guarding off the dribble tonight," Wizards coach Randy Wittman said. "We defended pretty much a lot of their sets and then it gets down to seven, eight seconds on the shot clock and they break you down off the dribble. Thats how they get 60 points in the paint." Wall led the Wizards with 22 points, but went 0-for-7 from the field in the second half, and Marcin Gortat added 18 points and 11 rebounds. Washington has lost three straight and five of six. The Wizards are 0-3 against Toronto, and fell to 13-14 at home this season. "They stayed with it," Wittman said of the fourth quarter rally. "We got the floor spread, made some shots. Uncharacteristically, (we) turned some shots down tonight. I thought we werent as aggressive from our perimeters with Brad (Beal), Trevor (Ariza) and Martell. Beal played nearly 37 minutes and went 2-of-10 from the field, finishing with nine points, while Webster finished with seven and Ariza six. "I was just taking what they were giving me. I found my teammates open," Beal said. "We just didnt make shots and thats all it was. Did I have a few? Maybe. But Im the one whos taking them and feeling comfortable and I didnt feel comfortable taking them." The post All-Star Break opener paired the teams currently in third place (Toronto) and sixth in the Eastern Conference when play began. The score was tied after one, but reserves Tyler Hansbrough and Vasquez (four points each) manufactured an 8-2 Toronto run early in the second quarter. The Raptors scored 38 of their 55 first-half points in the paint, on 19-of-26 shooting. Wall, coming off a win in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest and 12 points in his first All-Star Game, kept the Wizards close. After scoring 10 points in the opening quarter, he added nine more in the second, hitting 9-of-12 field goals in the half. NOTES: Wittman was ejected after picking up two second technical fouls with 4:39 remaining and Washington trailing 98-82. . Wizards F Al Harrington, who has missed the last 46 games (right knee), practiced for the first time Monday. . The teams final meeting is Feb. 27 in Toronto. Ben Bishop Lightning Jersey .Russia, managed by Fabio Capello, kept first place in Group G with four points from two games.Level on points was Austria, which beat Moldova 2-1 away, and Montenegro, which was unable to beat tiny Liechtenstein in a goalless draw. Jason Garrison Jersey . "Maybe, we were too comfortable," he told TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie. "It looked to me that - the year before we had a lot of injuries and a number of the key guys didnt play very much - we came to camp with a full group, maybe we thought we were going to be better than we were going to be and, certainly, we didnt compete at the same level.CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Charlotte Bobcats finally have a happy locker room, the result of winning games and contending for a berth in the NBA playoffs. The Bobcats took a step closer to a post-season spot Friday, holding off a fourth-quarter rally to beat the Orlando Magic 91-80 for their third straight win. "It shows how hard theyve really worked, and how theyve fought to get back to this point," Charlotte coach Steve Clifford said. "Now wed like to get over .500, which would be a nice thing for our team." Al Jefferson had 29 points and 16 rebounds, and Kemba Walker added 13 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the Bobcats, who at 38-38 are back at .500 for the first time since Nov. 23, when they were 7-7. Now Charlotte has a shot at its first winning record since Nov. 15, when the Bobcats were 5-4 despite not having Jefferson in the lineup because of an ankle injury. "Were heading in the right direction," Jefferson said. "Were a team thats playing well right now. Weve just got to continue to get better, and get ready for the playoffs. "Were right there, but weve got to take it one game at a time." Victor Oladipo scored 21 points and three others finished in double figures for the Magic, who despite having the leagues third-worst record (21-55) had beaten Charlotte twice in three previous meetings. But on Friday, Orlando faced the Bobcats without 7-foot centre Nikola Vucevic, who was a game-time scratch after he complained of soreness in his left Achilles tendon. "I went through my pregame routine, and it started to become more and more sore," Vucevic said. "I talked to the trainer, and we decided it was best for me not to go." Without Vucevic -- who had 24 points and 20 rebounds in the Magics 110-105 overtime victory over Charlotte on March 28 -- in the lineup, Jefferson broke loose for 21 points and 11 rebounds in the first half. Still, it took a big run in the second quarter for the Bobcats to take command, leading by as many as 19 points before taking a 53-36 halftime lead. Charlotte extended that lead to 21 points midway through the third quarter, going up 68-47 on Jeffersons jumper with 5:08 remaining, before Orlando began making a comeback. Despite shooting just 35.6 per cent from the field, the Magic cut the Bobcatts lead to 72-60 by the end of the third quarter, and pulled within 76-69 on Oladipos 3-pointer with 8:58 remaining in the fourth. Alex Killorn Lightning Jersey. But Gary Neal (12 points) had a three-point play 26 seconds later to push Charlottes lead back into double figures. "It was really the effort up and down the floor," Magic coach Jacque Vaughn said. "Just being in the right place and being committed to it. Its just that simple. Overall, the energy in the second half was how we have to be." Orlando had that energy in the first half, twice taking brief leads in the opening minutes of the second quarter. The Magic went up 21-20 on ETwaun Moores jumper with 11:43 left, and were ahead 25-24 after Oladipos layup with 9:02 remaining. But Anthony Tolliver (13 points) hit his second 3-pointer of the quarter with 8:44 left to put the Bobcats ahead to stay and kick off a 27-6 run. Jeffersons dunk with 3:36 left gave Charlotte its first double-digit lead, at 41-30, and Walker hit a pair of free throws with 1:50 left to put the Bobcats ahead 51-30, their biggest lead of the half. The seventh-place Bobcats begin a three-game road trip Saturday at Cleveland, with stops in Washington on April 9 and Boston on April 11, as the near their first playoff appearance since 2010. "Its been a long time coming," Walker said. "Its very satisfying. Weve been through a lot of ups and downs this season, but weve stuck with things as a team. Its exciting, especially to get to this point." Notes: Bobcats F Josh McRoberts sat out his second straight game recuperating from a sprained left ankle. Clifford said that McRoberts would take the next two days off, and may resume practice Monday. ... Charlotte got a scare late in the first quarter when Michael Kidd-Gilchrist went down hard after having his layup blocked. Kidd-Gilchrist, who missed seven games with ankle problems earlier this season, was listed as "questionable" by team officials for the rest of the game with a bruised back, but he returned to play the second half. ... The Bobcats have created a website -- www.bigalspaint.com -- to promote Jefferson as an All-NBA candidate. The website went public Thursday, and features quotes from opposing players and coaches, stats and stories by local and national media. 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