NBA

“Finally!” Toronto achieves its first away win

Jakob Pöltl

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At the eleventh attempt, the Toronto Raptors landed their first away win of the season in the NBA on Wednesday (local time). "Finally", commented Jakob Pöltl on the 119:93 win at the New Orleans Pelicans. The Vienna native recorded two points, eight rebounds, two steals and one assist and block each. He was in action for 30:38 minutes.

The Canadians set the tone in Louisiana in the final minutes before halftime and finally put the game away in the third period with a 31:17 victory. The Pelicans "shut down the zone, but from the second quarter onwards we hit our threes at a high percentage and also built a big lead thanks to good defense," said Pöltl. The Raptors made 21 of their 52 shots from beyond the arc (40.4 percent).

Ochai Agbaji and Jamison Battle each scored 24 points for Toronto. In their fourth away game in a row, the Canadians will host the Miami Heat on Friday. Their upcoming opponents beat the Charlotte Hornets by the narrow margin of 98:94. Tyler Herro was the top scorer with 27 points.

First home defeat for Cleveland
The Cleveland Cavaliers suffered their second defeat of the season. The NBA leaders lost 124:135 to the Atlanta Hawks, their first defeat in front of their own fans. Donovan Mitchell's 30 points were not enough. On the Hawks' side, Trae Young scored 20 points and had a career-best 22 assists.

In the top game of the day, the Oklahoma City Thunder won 105:101 at the Golden State Warriors and consolidated first place in the Western Conference. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points for the winners. The Warriors had to do without their ailing top star Stephen Curry. They lost for the third time in a row.