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TORONTO - In a play that sort of typified the evening and maybe even their season, Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry led a second-quarter fast break by delivering a one-handed bounce pass to Greivis Vasquez, who lateraled to the trailing Amir Johnson. Johnson, the beneficiary of a couple perfectly placed passes, capped off the sequence with a tomahawk slam that put Toronto on top by 20 points. Fouled on the landing, Johnsons momentum carried him into the first row, where he proudly pointed to the team name on his jersey and slapped hands with fans seated on the baseline. It was that kind of night. The proceedings began with the unveiling of a second Atlantic Division Championship banner and concluded with a well-deserved standing ovation just over two hours later. The Raptors - trotting off the court following a 110-100, wire-to-wire win over the Bucks - had set a new franchise record with their 48th victory of the season, while also going 15 games above the .500 mark for the first time in team history. "Its definitely great because we fed off our fans," said DeMar DeRozan, who stood centre court and counted down from three, as the banner was uncovered from the rafters atop Air Canada Centre, hanging adjacent to the one they had earned in 2006-07. The final home game of the season - Fanapolooza, as its been dubbed - had been a somber event for five years running. It was an opportunity for the Raptors loyal, albeit frustrated supporters to come bid farewell to a team that had let them down, a chance to vent their disappointment but mostly to guzzle up free t-shirts, pizza and whatever swag the remorseful organization was offering up. Most importantly, it meant the end of basketball in Toronto for another long summer. Not the case on Monday. Monday night was a celebration, a show of appreciation from a starved fan base to a team that has captured their admiration with resilience and hard play. It was a night of reflection, looking back at where they came from and rejoicing in what theyve accomplished. It wasnt a goodbye. Theyll see them again in five or six days. "Weve got to have some of the most devoted fans in the league," he continued. "Ive been here through the struggles and tough times and our fans were still right there with us on this journey. So it definitely felt good to share it with them because they played a major part in it as well." Although DeRozan was in uniform, available to play if it would have come to that, he was given the night off to rest going into his playoff debut next weekend. As it turns out, they didnt need him, not against the league-worst Bucks on Monday night. It was the 11th time theyve played without a member of their first unit - a group that has won more games than any starting five in franchise history - and the 11th time theyve come away victorious. With the Raptors all-star guard cheerleading from the sidelines, Greivis Vasquez started in his stead, pacing the team with 25 points and seven assists. "It was a fun win," said Vasquez, who knocked down his first six shots, five of them from beyond the arc. "They gave me a chance to start, I just went out there and did my job." Performances like his, like Tyler Hansbroughs double-double in 20 minutes, are a big part of whats gotten them to this point. DeRozan has carried this team more often than not, so too has Lowry - who scored 16 of his 24 points in the second half - but when one or both have needed it, someone has generally been waiting and ready to back them up. "All it takes is the right chemistry, the right group of guys and you can do whatever it takes," DeRozan said. "You dont need no big name players, you dont need this, that and the third, what people supposedly say you need. Were proof of that and we continue to keep growing, keep learning and keep building. On to the next step." The next step, as the Raptors leading scorer puts it, is Wednesdays regular season finale in New York. With a win over the Knicks, Toronto would lock down the Eastern Conferences third seed and face whomever slots into sixth, most likely Washington. The Raptors would fall to fourth and play the fifth place team - likely Brooklyn - if they should lose on Wednesday and the Bulls defeat the Bobcats in Charlotte. "Im more worried about us, more so than who we play," said Casey. "Its about us, about our health, the rest, whatever we decide to do in that situation. If we play Brooklyn we play Brooklyn. If we play Washington we play Washington. There are no easy teams left in the playoffs right now. All of the teams are very capable. Brooklyn is probably more playoff-ready. But we cant control that. And Im not going into [Wednesdays] game trying to control that." The Raptors coach said he has not decided whether DeRozan - second in the NBA in minutes logged this year - will play in Wednesdays season finale. Home sweet home The Raptors will finish the season with 26 wins at home for the fourth time in franchise history. After dropping eight of their first 12 games at the ACC, they have become one of the toughest teams to beat on home court, winning 22 of 29 since the end of December. "Coach definitely stressed to us, weve got to protect home court," DeRozan said of the turnaround. "Thats big. We cant let teams come in here and think they can get wins. We really started taking it personally, understanding weve got to use our crowd to our advantage. Everybody bought in, so every time we were home we felt comfortable and felt that we could get any win." "I think our guys have gotten better, matured, improved, I think more than anything else," Dwane Casey said of their success at home. "You should have the same approach whether youre on the road, playing on the moon, wherever youre playing youve got to have the same approach and our guys have done a good job of that, whether were on the road or at home." They were undefeated, 19-0 in games they led going into the fourth quarter in Toronto, something that should serve them well as they go into the first round of the playoffs with home-court advantage. The stat With their fourth straight win over Milwaukee, the Raptors swept the season series with the Bucks for the first time in team existence. The quote "We had group at the start of the season that was motivated, dedicated to winning," said Lowry, "and when everything didnt pan out we made a move and we got a group of guys who came in that really filled the voids that we needed. Everyone is on the same page. Andre Dawson Jersey .Morse gets a $1 million signing bonus and salaries of $7 million next season and $8 million in 2016 under the agreement announced Wednesday. Custom Chicago Cubs Jerseys . Jannero Pargo scored 14 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter to help the Charlotte Bobcats erase a 21-point deficit and rally for an 83-76 preseason victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night. http://www.thecubsteamshop.com/ . Ben Street scored twice for the Heat (17-5-1), who won their fourth game in a row and 13th in their last 14 outings. Brett Bulmer scored the lone goal for the Wild (6-11-0), who dropped their sixth straight contest. Sammy Sosa Jersey . So far, so good: Gonzalez has allowed one run through 12 innings this season. His second start came Tuesday night, when he gave up only three singles over six innings to lead the Nationals to a 5-0 victory over the Miami Marlins. Javier Baez Jersey . - Olympic champion Marielle Thompson accomplished her mission of defending her skicross World Cup title at Nakiska Ski Area on Saturday.MIAMI -- Giancarlo Stantons home runs can be indescribable for his Marlins teammates. "Uuufff," was all shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria could come up with after Stantons latest mammoth shot. Stanton hit a homer that was pushing 500 feet to lead Miami to an 8-2 win over the San Diego Padres on Friday night. His two-run blast travelled an estimated 484 feet to left field, according to ESPN Stats and Info, nearly leaving the stadium and giving the Marlins a 2-0 lead in the first inning "He absolutely crushed that ball, but it doesnt surprise me," Marlins pitcher Tom Koehler said. "Ive seen him hit balls further." Jarrod Saltalamacchia had three hits and drove in two runs and Adeiny Hechavarria had a career-high four hits for the Marlins, who have won four of five to start the season. "I think guys are feeling good, theyre confident," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said. "Were having fun. Were just going out there and playing." Tom Koehler (1-0) pitched six innings, allowing two runs and Brad Hand pitched three scoreless innings for his first career save. Yasmani Grandal and Jedd Gyorko each had two hits for the Padres, who have lost three straight. Eric Stults (0-1) allowed five runs in four innings. Stantons second home run got the Marlins rolling and is the longest in the three-year history of the Marlins ballpark. "It was a good first punch," Stanton said. He has nine RBIs through five games while hitting .350. Logan Morrison previously had the longest homer in the stadium at 467 feet off Washingtons Dan Haren on Sept. 6, 2013. "Now you cant say Lo-Mos got a bigger bomb than me," Stanton said. "I thought the one that hit the scoreboard (462 feet against Jamie Moyer in 2012)) was equivalent, but sweet.dddddddddddd The pitch wasnt where Stults had in mind. "I just threw a fastball down the middle," Stults said. "I was trying to throw a fastball in and just didnt get it to my spot." Casey McGehee had two RBIs pushing his total to 10, which is the most by any Marlins player in the first five games of the season. McGehee had a sacrifice fly as part of a three-run third inning to stretch the lead to 5-0 and had an RBI single in the eighth to cap the scoring for Miami. The Marlins have scored 35 runs in their 4-1 start after finishing last in the majors in runs last season during their 100-loss campaign. On the other end is San Diego, which has scored eight runs in four games. "Thats something that can get a little bit overplayed," Gyorko said. "We have 700 at-bats coming so you cant look too much into things at this point." Garrett Jones also had an RBI double and Marcell Ozuna drove in a run for the Marlins. Hechavarria, known more for his dazzling defensive plays at shortstop, is hitting .579 after hitting .227 as a rookie last season. "I was just disappointing in my performance last year, that was a driving force into me improving this year," Hechavarria said. Yonder Alonso and Gyorko drove in the runs for the Padres. "Its so big in this game to get into a rhythm and they had it going early and we didnt," Alonso said. NOTES: Grandal, a Miami native, reached base four times and had approximately 150 friends and family members in attendance. . Miami Dolphins offensive tackle Brandon Albert threw out the ceremonial first pitch. . Marlins 21-year old ace RHP Jose Fernandez (1-0, 1.50) will make his second start of the season on Saturday against Padres RHP Andrew Cashner (0-0, 1.50). ' ' '