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TORONTO - For months weve been hearing all about their impossibly difficult early-season schedule. Through 34 contests, the Raptors have had the most difficult slate of games in the Eastern Conference, according to Basketball-Reference.com. Theyve played 19 on the road and 16 against winning teams, both tied for most in the East. They have seen both conference finalists, Miami and Indiana three times. In spite of it all, Toronto is right where Dwane Casey had cautiously hoped they would be; at sea level. "These five games are a crucial stretch of games here at home for us," Casey said ahead of Wednesdays 112-91 victory over the Pistons, a win that got Toronto back to the .500 mark. "Its a very crucial time." Following another daunting road trip, capped off by disappointing but expected losses to the Heat and Pacers, the Raptors schedule finally begins to ease up. Wednesdays meeting with Detroit was the first of four straight against losing teams. Four of their next five are at home and only two of the remaining 12 contests in January come against opponents that went into Wednesdays games with winning records. Casey had spoken about using recent tests against the leagues best as a measuring stick for his emerging team but these upcoming few weeks may tell him more about where they stack up in the Eastern Conference. They must continue to win the games they should. Taking care of the Pistons, one of the Easts talented disasters, was a promising first step. Toronto coughed up an 11-point second-quarter lead in what turned out to be an ugly opening half for both teams. DeMar DeRozan and Amir Johnson combined to shoot 0-of-16 while the team was outscored by 16 points in the paint, outworked by another physical frontline. Lucky to be down only four at the break, the Raptors adjusted going into the second half, where they outscored the visitors 62-37. "We pretty much said, this is a must-win game," Johnson maintained. "We have to go out and take it and we did that." Although they shot just 41 per cent from the field, the Raptors knocked down 11 three-pointers, including five from Terrence Ross, who had 17 points on the night. Toronto improved to 8-2 on the season when connecting on 10 or more three-balls. Kyle Lowry led the team in scoring with 21 to go along with nine assists, Johnson and Jonas Valanciunas both added double-doubles and DeRozan finished with 19 points, 13 of which came from the free throw line. "We knew it was going to be a grind it out game and thats something were learning to do," Casey added. "Theres no pretty games in the NBA, its a mans league," he continued. "To win in this league, to win in the Eastern Conference especially - I found out in my three years in it - its a mans [conference]. Its a hit, knockdown, drag out [conference] and the strong survive. Were learning how to do that." The Raptors were a different team coming out of the locker room after intermission. They bested the Pistons in the paint - Detroit leads the league in that category - out-rebounded them and imposed their will on a struggling team that has now lost six in a row. After eight lead changes in the first half, there was just one in the second and it was all the Raptors needed to seize control. "Theyre must-win games," Johnson said. "Theyre all home and we need to win those games just to stay at the top of our division. Theyre must-win games and weve got to come out and play hard." With Brooklyn on deck, followed by games against the woeful Bucks and Celtics, the Raptors have to continue to do just that. Theyve got to seize this opportunity. Although Toronto is just 1-5 facing the Pacers and Heat this season, theyre 11-5 against the rest of the conference. Sitting just one game out of third place in the East - after the Horford-less Hawks upset Indiana on Wednesday - the Raptors are now in a position to validate their recent success. They can separate themselves from the heap of mediocrity theyll be facing throughout the duration of the month of they will end up blending in with them. "Theres no reason for any of us to be content or satisfied or be able to be happy about [where we are]," Casey preached. "Weve got to play like a hungry team. Weve got to continue to grow, weve got to continue to have the underdog attitude because thats where we are. " "Were nowhere near an established program. Im not kidding myself, I know what an established program is all about and were not there yet. We have a lot of growth to do with our core group of guys." James Van Riemsdyk Jersey . The 20-year-old overager has appeared in 35 games for the Ontario Hockey Leagues Erie Otters this season, scoring 41 goals and adding 27 assists with a plus-28 rating. Bernie Parent Jersey . The D-Backs came into being in 1998 and appear destined to finish second in the AL West after the Tsunami that is the Los Angeles Dodgers swept over them. I thought it might be interesting to see what the D-backs have done over their 16 years compared to what the Blue Jays have done over their past 16 campaigns. http://www.officialflyersfanstore.com/au...-flyers-jersey/. Andrew Luck couldnt believe his ears. Colts fans couldnt believe the scoreboard, and the Kansas City Chiefs couldnt believe their incredibly bad luck. Samuel Morin Jersey . Mika Zibanejad and Jason Spezza scored in the shootout to lead the Ottawa Senators to a 2-1 victory over Nashville on Saturday night. Scott Laughton Jersey . The injury will keep the Finnish forward out of the Olympics. The 29-year-old has 20 goals and 41 points in 56 games this season, his first with Tampa Bay. MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. -- The handshakes and backslaps exchanged in the Miami Dolphins locker room late Sunday afternoon were gestures of consolation, not celebration, before players quietly slipped out the back door at the end of another disappointing season. Miami was eliminated from the scramble for the AFCs final wild-card berth by the New York Jets, who thrived in the role of spoilers against their archrivals and won 20-7. The Dolphins blew an early lead to complete a December collapse that will keep them out of the playoffs for a fifth straight year. "Its definitely going to take a little while to get over this one," quarterback Ryan Tannehill said. New Yorks Geno Smith led three long scoring drives, ran for a touchdown and threw for 190 yards, while two interceptions by rookie Dee Milliner and one by 35-year-old Ed Reed prevented a Miami comeback. The Dolphins (8-8) squandered a shot at their first post-season berth since 2008 by losing the final two games to non-playoff teams, including a shutout defeat at last-place Buffalo. It was a dismal end to a roller-coaster season that included a four-game losing streak, a bullying scandal that drew national scrutiny, and a December surge that briefly left the Dolphins in control of their playoff destiny -- but turned out to be a tease. "Our record is 8-8, and thats the definition of average," cornerback Brent Grimes said. "We felt like we could be a much better than average team, so were disappointed. We messed up in the last two games. Weve just got to live with that." The Dolphins were outscored 39-7 in those final two games. Now owner Stephen Ross must decide whether to shake up a regime led by second-year coach Joe Philbin and sixth-year general manager Jeff Ireland. "You have to earn your way into the playoffs. Clearly we didnt do that," Philbin said. "The results start with me. The head coach is responsible for the results. The offence, the defence, the special teams, the record -- it starts with me. Lets not stand here and blame the players." The Jets (8-8) celebrated as though theyre playoff-bound but will sit out the post-season for the third year in a row. After the game, owner Woody Johnson announced that coach Rex Ryan would return for a sixth season in 2014. Ryan, whose future had been in question, said Johnson gave him the news before the game. When players were told afterward, they cheered in the locker room. "Ill say this -- I love being the head coach of the New York Jets, plain and simple,&quoot; Ryan said.dddddddddddd "You put everything youve got into it. I never wanted to go out this way. Weve missed the playoffs three straight years, and that bothers me, no question." The Jets made sure they were joined on the post-season sideline by Miami. The only points of the seasons final two weeks for the Dolphins put them ahead 7-0 in the second quarter, but the Jets rallied by mounting touchdown drives of 71 and 80 yards on their final possessions of the first half. When Smith scored on a 7-yard, third-down keeper up the middle with 3 seconds left for a 14-7 lead at halftime, an excited Ryan ran on the field to celebrate with his players. Fans were booing in the first half and streaming for the exits in the final minutes. Smith drove the Jets 63 yards to set up a field goal that gave them a 17-7 cushion with 4:18 left, and on the next play Reed grabbed a deflected pass for his 64th career interception to all but seal the victory. Milliner stopped a Miami threat in the third quarter with a diving interception of Tannehill one play after Mike Wallace dropped a potential touchdown pass that would have tied the game. The Jets played like a team with nothing to lose, which they were, and eager to spoil Miamis season. They kept the Dolphins off balance with swarming defence and imaginative play-calling, including 294-pound defensive lineman Sheldon Richardsons 1-yard plunge for his second rushing touchdown this season. Running back Bilal Powell threw a 30-yard completion to set up the Jets field goal. Dolphins receiver Brian Hartline left the game in the first quarter with a left knee injury, while Wallace and Tannehill found it difficult to click all day. Tannehill overthrew an open Wallace deep, and Wallace slipped and fell on Milliners first interception. They did combine for a 5-yard touchdown to cap an 89-yard drive. But the Dolphins running game sputtered, as usual, and Tannehill finished with a woeful passer rating of 42.1. "It cant get worse than this," Wallace said. "We let them win. We let them dominate the game. We knew what we had on the line, and we didnt come up with the plays we needed." Notes: Hartline limped out of the game after a 25-yard reception that put him over the 1,000-yard mark for the second year in a row. ... Jets reserve CB Kyle Wilson left in the first half with a knee injury and didnt return. ... Before the game, former LB-DE Kim Bokamper, WR O.J. 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