TORONTO - With just over seven seconds left on the clock and Fridays game hanging in the balance, a sellout Air Canada Centre crowd rose to their feet, holding their breath in anticipation. Duke Dawson Jersey . Theyve been holding their breath for six years now, but finally they can exhale. As Celtics forward Jared Sullinger forced up a wild, off-balance runner, the building erupted. It was official. The Raptors are heading back to the post-season. "We made it," shouted Amir Johnson repeatedly as the media filtered into Torontos locker room. "Its a satisfying, kind of overwhelming feeling," he described, following his teams 105-103 victory over Boston, officially snapping the Raptor five-year playoff drought. "Its been six years since this team, this organization made it to the playoffs. This team has worked so hard. We deserved it. Weve been playing our butts off, playing through injuries. Weve had our ups and downs." "Weve made it." Not lost on the team was the fact that they stole a game, their 41st victory of the season, that probably shouldnt have come down to the final possession. Down by four with under three minutes to play, it looked like the Raptors would have to hope for a New York Knicks loss later in the evening or wait until Sunday to punch their ticket to the playoffs. Theyve been resilient all year, so why wouldnt they be now? First DeMar DeRozan drained a fadeaway jumper, then Johnson hit the game-winning put-back layup. "It was fitting," Dwane Casey said. DeRozan and Johnson, the teams longest tenured players, were responsible for Torontos final four points. For them, this moment was a little sweeter. "It means a lot, honestly, man," said DeRozan, the Raptors fifth-year guard, who will make his post-season debut next month. "Especially for me and Amir and what weve been through here with the tough seasons, through the ups and downs and the struggles. We stuck with it." The only player in the building that could give a firsthand account of the Raptors last playoff experience - a five-game, first round defeat at the hands of the Orlando Magic in 2007-08 - was Celtics forward Kris Humphries. Only four other players from that team are currently on an NBA roster, but DeRozan and Johnson – who arrived the year after – have both been in Toronto long enough to appreciate what a night like this means to the franchise, the city and the Raptors long-suffering fan base. "It was all worth it," said DeRozan. "These fans stuck behind us every single day and theyre going to continue to do so. Thats the reason why we work extremely hard. Our fans definitely push us." Of course, it was just a formality. It was inevitable, only a matter of time. Toronto wasnt going to go winless in its remaining games, just like the Knicks were not going to run the table the rest of the way. Still, they have refused to count their chickens before they hatched and for that you can credit the humility and focus of their head coach. Moments after the win, a loud chorus of applause could be heard from outside the teams locker room. Finally, they could celebrate, albeit behind closed doors. Even Casey, who wouldnt pat himself on the back and likely never will, found a way to indulge in what the evening represented. "Were excited about it," he admitted. "My hat is off to all the guys whove come through here," said Casey, crediting MLSE chairman Larry Tanenbaum as well as former general manager Bryan Colangelo for their contributions to the process. "To DeMar DeRozan [and] Amir Johnson, who have been through it all and for the fans, the fans for understanding and being patient. I know they didnt see the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but its a process. You dont build Rome overnight in this league. Is very difficult to do. You talk about rebuilding, its a hard gig." The Raptors have surpassed every rational expectation, going 35-19 since the trade of Rudy Gay in early December. Its been a season of firsts for a franchise on the cusp of its 20th birthday, a franchise many pundits wrote off for dead after selling off its highest-paid player. "Everybody who writes something on a piece of paper isnt always right, thats how I look at it," said DeRozan, the first-time All-Star. Hes right. He and his team have proven a lot of people wrong. As the Celtics made their run, cutting their deficit - once 14 - down and ultimately taking the lead, DeRozan came through yet again. With Kyle Lowry slowed by an ankle injury he sustained in the first half, DeRozan picked him up and scored 24 of his game-high 30 points in the final 24 minutes. 16 of his 27 career 30-point games have come this season. With 10 games remaining and their spot in the pos-tseason locked up, the team can shift its attention to seeding but most importantly, going into the playoffs healthy and with momentum. "We cant be satisfied," Casey repeated, with his team moving into soul possession of the third seed following the Chicago Bulls loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday. "We still want to continue on and weve still got to get better." Lowrys injury scare With three minutes to go in the second quarter, Lowry limped to the locker room after turning his right ankle while back-pedaling to get back on defence. After being examined by the medical staff, the Raptor point guard and most important player was able to return, starting the second half with his ankle taped up. As per usual, Lowry shrugged off whatever pain he was in after the win. "Im a little sore, but Im fine," he said after scoring nine points in 33 minutes. "Im okay. Good to go." Revenge of the second unit Naturally, Casey was frustrated with his under-performing bench after they were outscored 51-7 in Boston on Wednesday. "I challenged them before the game," said the Raptors coach. "I got on them about their productivity or lack thereof in the Boston game. I challenged them. I said, Look, guys want playing time, when the opportunity comes, youve got to do something, whether its defence, knocking somebody down, taking a charge, whatever. And they came through." Greivis Vasquez, who scored all seven of the benchs points on Wednesday, led the teams reserves with 15, but Chuck Hayes and John Salmons were also productive on both ends of the floor. Combined, the three former Kings - along with Tyler Hansbrough, who logged five minutes - totalled 28 points on the night. Patterson nearing a return Although he missed his 12th straight game, Patrick Patterson has been making progress and appears to be on the verge of returning from his right elbow injury. Although the Raptors havent had much practice time to get Patterson back up to speed - a concern Casey expressed before Fridays game - the Raptors forward has been able to participate in smaller, three-on-three scrimmages since being cleared for contact earlier this week. "[His] conditioning is probably going to be step behind a little bit," Casey acknowledged. "Its not going to be where he was before stepping away, so thats going to be expected. Thats why now we need to kind of get him back in rhythm and with the lack of practice time its going to have to be in a game situation." Patterson could be back in uniform this weekend in Florida, as the Raptors begin a back-to-back set with the Magic on Sunday before visiting the Heat Monday evening. The stat With their 41st win of the season, the Raptors secured a .500 record for the sixth time in franchise history and first since 2007-08, the last year they qualified for the playoffs. The quote "My grandmother called," Johnson told the media after his team clinched a spot in the playoffs. "She said that she was proud." Kevin Faulk Jersey .C. -- Tony Stewart will not race Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway, the third Sprint Cup race hes skipped since his car struck and killed Kevin Ward Jr. Trey Flowers Jersey . The Oilers have been shut out in three straight home games and are in last place in the Western Conference with a 4-14-2 record. "Things have obviously not gone as well as I would have thought probable. http://www.officialnewenglandpatriotsfootball.com/authentic-jordan-richards-jersey-womens .40 metres at the Drake Relays. Drouin, from Corunna, Ont., bested his own record of 2.38 metres set in Aug.As another year in the soccer world comes to an end, it is important to note it does so without a real feud between the international and club game. This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Although it is has always been this way, it does not make it right. Playing for your country in any sport should be an honour, yet it is on this premise that the international game has gotten away with so much in recent years. Should it really be an honour to have to leave your team in the middle of an important part of the season to head to some foreign land to play an international match that may or may not mean anything? Never mind the middle of the season, what about the start of it? Is that still an honour that should force players to go? Once again at the start of this European club season, a nonsensical international window was put in by FIFA, allowing countries to claim their players away from their clubs just hours before they kicked off a new campaign. At the moment, the relationship between the international game and the club game could be described as moderate. It is a high-profile game of chess being played out in front of billions of people using millionaire players as pieces on the board. Too many high-profile managers are afraid to speak out against governing bodies such as UEFA and FIFA while on the other side of the table sits the governing bodies plotting their next move. Chess players know how important it is to think three moves ahead and, although the 2014 calendar will be dominated by images of the World Cup in Brazil, the years to follow will feature a long list of international games that will mean very little. UEFAs decision to move to 24 teams for the 2016 European Championships in France mean even fewer qualifiers will matter. Countries like Spain, Germany and Italy, for example, could send their under 21 teams to all their qualifiers and easily reach the tournament. And these will be the games that matter. Sprinkled amongst them will be friendly games arranged for international managers to see their players close up and try things with them in a game. These are the matches the governing bodies know they need to change. As we move into 2014, the sports consumer is demanding something important all of the time. A tell me it matters attitude is forcing sports all over the world to come up with tournaments and formats that stop as many meaningless games being played as possible. And then there is soccer. A sport dominated by club teams that, in 2013, still allow countries to take their players all over the globe to play games that mean nothing. It simply cannot continue down that path for much longer. Players like Sami Khedira and Christian Eriksen picked up bad injuries in recent international friendlies that significantly affected their club teams. Imagine Lionel Messi breaks his leg playing one of these friendly games for Argentina? One of two things need to happen, and will happen sooner rather than later. FIFA/UEFA will come up with a format to make these games matter, to put countries in league tables – similar to their world rankings – where they will get benefits of seediing for major tournaments and play more teams within their league. Drew Bledsoe Jersey. This is likely to happen soon because if it doesnt, the clubs will eventually have every right to put pressure on their players to not go for meaningless international matches. A World Cup year is magnificent for the international game but the four years in between are dangerous for FIFA/UEFA, even moreso now that the major tournaments – Euro 2016, Copa America – feature very little serious qualification, if any, for the major countries. Here in Canada, of course, we watch as outside observers. As 2013 turns into 2014, the sport again reaches new heights in terms of popularity. More people than ever are watching Premier League, Champions League and MLS games on television. With the lack of success of the Canadian mens national team, it is little wonder why most conversations about the professional game in Canada surround club football. The international game remains popular and Canada will be a wonderful place to sit and watch the 2014 World Cup amongst so many people from different countries. It is, indeed, one of the many things that make this country so great. However, we must remember it is still Canada. The mens national team has a long way to go to get back on peoples radar but, as we head into 2014, it is clear the same cannot be said about the womens game. In 2014 and 2015 Canada are ready to welcome the world. The 2014 Womens Under 20 World Cup will be a great dress rehearsal for when the main event comes to these shores a year later. The challenge for all international teams is to come close to the cohesion – on and off the pitch – displayed by club teams. That is already an advantage for Canada, as one of their star players, Diana Matheson, recently told me. "We really are like a family, the core of the team has been together for a long time and as we get older, we are making sure that everyone new into the camp feels part of it," she said. Matheson and some of her teammates are not far away from seeing their faces everywhere across Canada during the 2015 World Cup. "We have a hope of how big we want it to get," she said. The Canadian Soccer Association is blessed to have the Under 20 World Cup in 2014 as a way of gathering excitement for the big tournament the following summer. However, as national team defender Carmelina Moscato told me, it is more than just a promotional tool and those playing for Canada in that event will benefit tremendously. "The tournament in 2002 was what changed our lives – eight or nine of us on the team right now, thats the core group. It was such a kickstart to our careers that its exciting to know that opportunity is here again and see the next generation of players blossom in their own country." "Playing at home is an incredible experience," added captain Christine Sinclair.If you wish to watch those games, you should know that venue packs for the FIFA U-20 Womens World Cup Canada 2014 are on sale now and start as low as $40 plus fees. Of note, purchased venue packs in host cities that will also be part of the FIFA Womens World Cup Canada 2015™ will give purchasers an opt-in opportunity to be placed on a priority list to purchase venue packs to the 2015 competition in the same official host city. The full pricing chart is available online at FIFA.com/Canada2014. China NFL Jerseys Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys NFL Jerseys Cheap Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap Basketball Jerseys Online Stitched Hockey Jerseys Wholesale Baseball Jerseys Football Jerseys Outlet College Jerseys For Sale Cheap MLB Jerseys Wholesale Soccer Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys For Sale Wholesale NFL Jerseys ' ' '