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TORONTO - Defence has long been the calling card of Raptors head coach Dwane Casey, a foundation for which his teams have prided themselves on and an identity he fears may be slipping away early in training camp. Wholesale Orioles Jerseys . Were not anywhere near the defensive intensity we need to be [at], Casey said following another marathon practice session, roughly three hours long, at the Air Canada Centre Thursday afternoon. I know were not going to be in mid-season form but we need a better interest in playing defence and Im not seeing that right now. Thats our biggest challenge right now. With two exhibition contests under their belt, Casey has been unimpressed with his teams effort and toughness, primarily on the defensive end and on the boards. After taking Wednesday off - traveling back home from an eight-day trip out west - that frustration came to a head Thursday when Casey went back to the basics, as hes been known to do at this stage of the season. I think thats what preseason is for, said DeMar DeRozan, leading the team with an efficient 44 points in 44 minutes through two games this fall. We practice a lot of things but its different once youre in-game, going through it and experiencing it and learning on the go. Casey has seen the intensity hes expecting from the reigning Atlantic Division champs in spurts during camp - both in their own gym and during their time spent in Vancouver - but for whatever reason it did not translated to their two-game set with Sacramento as they split the series. Despite their perceived and justifiable flaws, the Kings, to their credit, are one of the tougher and more physical teams in the league. This wasnt the first time theyve given Caseys team fits, but thats something that needs to change if the Raptors are going to evolve and take the next step. Their coach is fully aware. They cause a few problems, that youre so concerned about, Casey said, citing the threat of DeMarcus Cousins and the Kings interior players on the boards and the way in which that alters Torontos defensive rotations. But thats a good excuse, and life is full of excuses. We still have to get it done. In Tuesday nights loss, Toronto allowed the Kings to shoot 55 per cent from the field (63 per cent after the first quarter), giving up 56 points in the paint and putting them on the line 50 times. The Raptors were out-rebounded 87-62 in both games. Last year the Raptors ranked 10th in defensive efficiency and were a top 12 team in both offensive and defensive rebounding percentage, but their sporadic production in those categories throughout the season is cause for some concern. Defensively, they faded over the final month of the campaign (ranked 17th over the final 20 games) while they struggled to rebound through multiple stretches, specifically against their more physical opponents. Overall it was those match-ups, against bigger teams like the Kings, that gave them the most difficulty during their breakthrough 2013-14 season. Are they mentally and physically tough enough to withstand the pressure they are about to face a year later? Their all-star caliber backcourt of DeRozan and Kyle Lowry has carried the offence through two exhibition games and are expected to do so most of the year, but much of Torontos success in that toughness department will be dependent on the growth and durability of its frontcourt. The Raptors have a lot invested in third-year centre Jonas Valanciunas, hoping he can grow into the anchor of their defence but understanding he still has a ways to go. Amir Johnson has served in that role for years but has taken a physical beating. Although its still early and it generally takes longer for big men to re-adjust to game speed at this stage of camp, theyve both stumbled a bit out of the gate. [Its] not only Jonas, its everybody, Casey insisted. Its everybody, all the interior people. Were just not there yet. These games dont matter, whether we win or lose, but the habits we create now are very important. [Theres] no sense of urgency on the defensive end, he continued. Were scoring the hell outta it. Everybodys shooting the ball very well but thats not going to win in this league. Injury Update Starter Terrence Ross was limited in practice Thursday, mostly taking part in shooting drills while nursing ankle and knee ailments on his right leg. Ross exited Sundays preseason opener late in the fourth quarter after getting tangled up with Kings guard Ramon Sessions and missed Tuesdays game as a precaution. An MRI, taken earlier in the week, came back negative and the third-year swingman is considered day-to-day. Patrick Patterson participated in full, wearing a wrap on his sore right hand after sitting out the first two games of the exhibition season. I was able to get on the floor today, Patterson said, running up and down a little bit with my teammates, test it out, see how I feel. So overall, getting better every single day. The Raptors forward sustained the injury in a collision with Valanciunas during workouts last week, jokingly attributing it to the JVs added muscle. He could be available as early as Friday, at home to the Celtics. Centre Greg Stiemsma was held out on Thursday as he undergoes testing as part of the leagues concussion protocol following his hard fall towards the end of the loss in Sacramento. Rookie Lucas Nogueira continues to be a spectator, hampered by what Casey called a very serious groin strain that has been lingering. Its a very tedious thing, Casey said of Nogueiras injury. What we dont want to do is rush it back where he gets it re-injured. So its something we have to be very careful with. Orioles Jerseys China . 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But Rooney headed United level seven minutes later, and the striker netted his 16th of the season for the struggling champions from the penalty spot before halftime.PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Matt Fraser scored twice and Niklas Svedberg made 32 saves to lift the Providence Bruins over the St. Johns IceCaps 5-2 in American Hockey League action on Sunday. Joe Morrow added a goal and an assist for the Bruins (4-2-2), Seth Griffin and Nick Johnson each scored, and Ryan Spooner chipped in with two assists. Eric ODell scored his fifth goal of the year for the IceCaps and Jason Jaffray added another as St. Johns fell to 3-5-1 on the season. IceCaps goalie Eddie Pasquale made 33 saves in the losing effort. St. Johns was 2-for-5 on the power play, while Providence went 2-for-4 with the man advantage. The Bruuins got on the board first when Griffin scored his third of the year at 9:09 of the first period. Orioles Jerseys 2020. Fraser scored his first of the game at 8:04 of the second period to give the home team a 2-0 edge, but the IceCaps responded with Jaffrays power-play goal at 17:51 to cut the lead in half. Fraser led off the third period with his second of the night, a power-play goal at 0:50 to put Providence ahead 3-1. Morrow chipped in with a power-play goal at 5:36 of the final period, and ODell burried his power-play goal three minutes later to make it a 4-2. Johnson put the game away with an empty net goal at 19:30. ' ' '