CHICAGO -- With eight wins in their last 11 games, the Toronto Raptors head into 2014 pointed in the right direction. Jonathan de Guzman Netherland Jersey . They believe it can be the start of something big. Jonas Valanciunas scored 15 points and the Toronto Raptors mounted a fourth-quarter comeback to beat the Chicago Bulls 85-79 on Tuesday night. He made two big free throws to seal the game in the final minute after Toronto had missed three of four from the line down the stretch. Greivis Vasquez hit a 3-pointer two minutes into the fourth to give Toronto (14-15) its first lead of the second half, and the Raptors didnt look back. Vasquez scored seven of his nine points in the fourth quarter, and also had two assists and a blocked shot in the final quarter as Toronto overcame the tenacious Bulls defence. "Greivis came in and changed the game," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. "It was a game of toughness and physicality that you have to have when you play if you are going to be in the playoffs. "That is how we will have to play to get there." Luol Deng led Chicago (12-18) with 16 points in his return to the court after missing five games due to a sore left Achilles tendon. Joakim Noah had a game-high 16 rebounds for the Bulls. Toronto shot 37 per cent through the first three quarters, but turned it up in the fourth making 10 of its 17 shots. Meanwhile, the Bulls went 4-for-24 from the field in the fourth quarter, falling to 1-6 at the United Center after starting the season 6-1. "The fourth quarter has got to be your best quarter," Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. "You have to have more intensity, your decision have to be quicker. We have to finish strong, we cant just flip the ball up there." Coming off of season-highs with 32 points and 11 assists Saturday against the Knicks, Kyle Lowry had a modest 12 and six against Chicago. The 27-year-old averaged 22.4 points over his last five games coming in, including 14-for-30 from 3-point range despite dealing with trade rumours. Lowry took an early breather after being whistled for a pair of fouls within the first five minutes. He didnt score until seven minutes into the second quarter when he knocked down a 3-pointer from the wing. He connected again from deep on the following possession. "We know we have a chance to do some things and we can take care of business when times get tough," Lowry said. "Pulling out these games is just showing that team camaraderie, the spirit that we have and were all happy for each other. Following his season-high 26-point performance Monday at Memphis, Jimmy Butler poured in 15 for Chicago (12-18). He completed a three-point play to pull the Bulls back within five with two minutes left, but they couldnt complete the comeback. Carlos Boozer missed his first seven shots and didnt find the scoring column until midway through the third quarter. Boozer, Noah and Kirk Hinrich combined to go 4-for-27 from the field. "We had the lead, and we didnt play as tough as we needed to with the lead," Thibodeau said. "We have to take a hard look at that." Deng was limited, playing 33 minutes. He averages just over 38 minutes per game. He acknowledged that he may be limited for a while longer. "I got into the game slowly," he said. "In the fourth quarter, I tried to be a little more aggressive and force it a little bit. I knew coming back, I was going to feel it anyway, but nothing too crazy, nothing too bad. Im happy with how it felt." Taj Gibson was the only player in double-figures when Chicago took a 42-36 lead into halftime. He finished with 12 points - two in the second half. Mike Dunleavy added 13 for Chicago, which had won three of its last four. Toronto has won two of the three meetings this season, the road team coming out on top each time. Notes: Bulls G D.J. Augustin, who was released by the Raptors on December 9, had six points and three assists on 3-of-4 shooting. Augustin shot just 1 for 7 from the floor against his former team on Dec. 14, a 99-77 loss. . Raptors F Amir Johnson was taken out in the second quarter due to a right knee injury, but returned minutes later after going to the locker room for treatment. He finished with nine points and six rebounds. Tim Krul Jersey . -- Vincent Viola grew up in Brooklyn, graduated from West Point, is a former chairman of the New York Mercantile Exchange and after the Sept. Stefan de Vrij Jersey . The Vikings announced Saturday they downgraded Peterson from doubtful on the original injury report to out against Detroit Sunday, when the Vikings and Lions will play the last game at the Metrodome.MIAMI -- For LeBron James, the mask was distinctive. His effort, that was basically the same as usual. So, too, was the outcome for the New York Knicks. Playing with a dark carbon-fiber mask to protect his broken nose -- a "menacing" look is how Heat coach Erik Spoelstra described it -- James scored 31 points to help Miami beat the reeling Knicks 108-82 on Thursday night. "I tried to put pressure on the defence, tried to make plays and I was happy to be back on the floor," said James, who missed one game because of the nose, which got broken on Feb. 20 at Oklahoma City. James made 13 of 19 shots and topped 30 points for his fifth consecutive outing. He said he plans to play with a mask for the next couple weeks, at least. "As much as I dont like it, I have to figure out how to make it work," James said. Dwyane Wade added 23 points, shooting 10 for 13 from the field. The Heat outscored New York 23-3 over the final 7:02 of the third and won their sixth straight. The Heat shot 61 per cent, while the Knicks shot 37 per cent. No team shot better than 49 per cent against Miami in 10 games during February, and none of the last four Heat opponents have shot better than 40 per cent. "Where we need it to be," Wade said. "Thats how we win games." Carmelo Anthony scored 29 points for New York, but none in the final 21:38. Tyson Chandler had 19 points and 16 rebounds, and J.R. Smith added 11 points for the Knicks, who fell to 2-10 in February. "I dont know if we got defused or what," Anthony said. We didnt bounce back." Raymond Felton, in his first game since being arrested on gun charges, missed six of seven shots and scored only two points for the Knicks. "No excuses," Felton said. Norris Cole, Mario Chalmers and Ray Allen each scored 11 points for the Heat, who are 41-7 in February games over the last four seasons. James got the buzz for this one going just before tip-off, strapping the mask over the top half of his face, the deviation from the usual clear-plastic look enough to send Twitter users into some sort of commenting oveerdrive. Jordy Clasie Netherland Jersey. "He played like Batman," Heat forward Chris Bosh said. More importantly to the Heat, the mask didnt seem to impair James vision much. James had 11 in the opening quarter, the Heat finished the period with a six-point lead and soon stretched the margin to 16 in the second quarter. A hook shot from Wade in the lane was his seventh straight make, giving Miami a 43-27 lead and indicating things would be a runaway. Eventually, they indeed would. But New York made it interesting for a bit. Anthony had a brilliant flurry, scoring all 16 of his second-quarter points in the final 5:52 of the period as New York erased just about every bit of that big Miami lead. Then with 8:36 left in the third, Anthony set up Smith for a jumper that got New York to 64-61. And from there, it was all Miami. Thats when the huge run to end the third got started. The Knicks missed 12 of their final 13 shots to end the third -- their only field goal in the final 8 1/2 minutes was a layup by Tim Hardaway Jr. -- and the Heat just got rolling. For some perspective, James had 12 points in the quarter while the Knicks, total, had 14. "We crumbled," Anthony said. "It got out of hand." Shane Battier set up James for a down-the-lane dunk that got Miamis lead back to double digits at 72-61 and the snowball just kept growing. A 10-0 run in the final 2:21 of the quarter turned it into a runaway; James got fouled by Anthony and turned it into a three-point play with 1:58 left, then beat Anthony on a cut and accepted a pass from Cole for an easy layup on the next possession. One trip later, Allen hit a 3-pointer, and just like that, Miamis lead was 23, the outcome quickly becoming academic. NOTES: It was the first time in Miami as an opponent for Hardaway, with the Knicks bench at the end of the court where Tim Hardaway Sr.s retired jersey number hangs from the rafters. ... Wade missed about three minutes in the first quarter to get an ankle re-taped. ... Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson was among the stars in attendance. ... The Heat didnt get a single offensive rebound until the fourth quarter. ' ' '
