No Shaquille O'Neal meant lots of room in the middle for Rasho Nesterovic in Miami.
Nesterovic roamed the key freely for team highs of 16 points and 10 rebounds, as the Toronto Raptors pummelled the Miami Heat 108-83 at American Airlines Arena on Wednesday night.
Jose Calderon drives to the basket in Wednesday's 108-83 Raptors victory.
(Alan Diaz/Associated Press)
"We were aggressive right from the beginning," Nesterovic said. "We really took them out of their game.
"We had the right mental approach, tonight. We came out with a lot of energy and wanted to make a statement."
Rookie Jamario Moon contributed 14 points, nine rebounds, four steals and three blocks in Toronto's second romp over Miami in a month.
The Raptors trounced the Heat 114-82 at the same venue on Feb. 4.
Head coach Pat Riley called Miami's effort "so unprofessional, it is ridiculous."
"I have got to ferret out the guys who really do not care," he said. "I have got to ferret them out of here and just put them on the bench and bring in a bunch of young guys.
"The season is over for them, that is how they're playing. Some of them, anyhow."
Jose Calderon chalked up nine points and a game-high 13 assists for the Raptors (33-27), who halted a three-game losing skid.
Bargnani breaks 3 teeth
T.J. Ford provided 13 points off the bench, while Andrea Bargnani and Anthony Parker had 12 points apiece.
Bargnani scored 10 of his 12 points in the first quarter as the Raptors capped a 23-3 burst with 16 straight points that put them ahead 23-8 with 3:55 left.
Bargnani knocked his head on the floor and broke three teeth on a harsh foul from Alexander Johnson as he drove to the basket with 9:57 left in the third quarter.
"I thought he was going up for a dunk, so I jumped and caught him off-balance," Johnson said. "I was not trying to hurt him."
Bargnani left for the locker room and did not return.
"I feel a lot better now," he said, confirming that X-rays ruled out any facial fractures.
"Any time a guy leaves his feet like that and takes that kind of a hit and goes down hard, you have to be concerned," Raptors head coach Sam Mitchell said. "But it seems like he is OK.
"He is a little sore. But we don't expect that he will miss any time at all."
Banks scores 21 points
Marcus Banks topped all scorers with 21 points for the Heat (11-47), who have lacked interior defence since trading O'Neal to the Phoenix Suns on Feb. 6.
"We're still trying to find the right chemistry," Banks said. "We just have not put it together yet."
Ricky Davis and Dwyane Wade tallied 16 points apiece, while Earl Barron had 10 points.
Shawn Marion, acquired in the O'Neal deal, finished with five points and a game-best 14 rebounds for Miami.
"When you lack focus versus a team like Toronto and you have any slippage, you're going to pay for it," Wade said. "They don't miss open shots.
"That is what happened early on. We had a lot of slippage."
With files from the Canadian Press
