With chance to take 3-1 series lead, Raptors fail to match Pacers’ intensity in Game 4

8:31 PM ET

INDIANAPOLIS — The Toronto Raptors had a chance to put a stranglehold on their first-round series with the Indiana Pacers, and they blew it.

The Raptors failed to match the intensity of the desperate Pacers from the jump and were routed by Indiana 100-83 in Game 4 on Saturday afternoon at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

“We didn’t come out with the right disposition in a game where their backs were against the wall,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey said, trying to take the heat off his players. “They knew they had to get this game, and we talked about it. But we can’t talk about it, we have to go out and do it on the floor, and we didn’t meet their force with our force.”

Once again, the main source of frustration was the inability of DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry to make shots. They went a combined 8-for-27 from the field — including 0-for7 from 3-point range. For the series, the Toronto guards are shooting a combined 30.8 percent.

“To be honest, I feel like the shots DeMar and me are taking we’ve made all year,” Lowry said. “They’re just not falling right now, but I’m not going to shy away from taking them, and neither is DeMar. Tip of the hat: They’re scheming for me and DeMar and they’re making shots tougher. But at the end of the day we’ve still got to make shots.”

Lowry found himself in early foul trouble and totalled 12 points and six assists before being disqualified late in the fourth quarter, while DeRozan had just eight points and did not get …

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