the fifth straight year — after rallying to beat Kevin Anderson.The fifth-seed

TORONTO - When DeMar DeRozan scored on a spectacular 360 layup Sunday night, he couldnt help but smile to himself.The highlight-reel basket was the punctuation mark on a night that saw the Toronto Raptors run roughshod over the Philadelphia 76ers with a 120-88 victory, improving their Eastern Conference-leading record to 6-1.The Raptors are alone atop the East for the first time in franchise history, and the jovial mood was evident in the post-game locker-room.Just stay under control, DeMar said, when asked what he was thinking going into the spin move. As long as I got a look at the basket, I felt like I could . . . Hes lying, he was lucky, interjected Kyle Lowry, seated one locker over.You try it, DeRozan said.It was luck, dog, Lowry answered.It was skill. I practised it, DeRozan said.DeRozan poured in 24 points on a veritable smorgasbord of shots, while Terrence Ross added 17, and Lou Williams finished with 16. Lowry had 14 points, while Greivis Vasquez chipped in with 13, and Jonas Valanciunas had 12 in Game 2 of Torontos seven-game homestand.Lowry later said DeRozans spin move was pretty good. Thats what he does. Thats why hes an all-star.The Raptors had talked before the game about getting a lead, and then keeping our foot on peoples necks. . . not give them any hope, DeRozan said.Mission accomplished. As coach Dwane Casey put it, the NBA is a no-mercy league.If you go in and disrespect them and dont come in with a professional approach, theyre very capable, like any other team in this league, of beating you, Casey said. I respect them, I dont feel sorry for them. I dont feel sorry for teams in this league because they dont feel sorry for us.Tony Wroten had 18 points to lead the woeful Sixers (0-7), the NBAs worst team. Chris Johnson finished with 16.The Raptors, who began the night a half game ahead of Washington and Chicago for first in the East, got off to a strong start, taking a 19-point lead in the opening quarter and never took their foot off the gas.Toronto led 88-63 with one quarter to play in what wasnt the most entertaining of games in front of an ACC crowd of 18,470 that included a bespectacled Drake.Ross, in his second strong game, drained a three with five minutes to play to give the Raptors a 113-72 lead. The second unit played the final five minutes of mop-up time, but showed no mercy. And when James Johnson threw down a massive dunk with 2:32 to play, it put Toronto up by 41 and brought the fans, the players on the Raptors bench, and Drake, to their feet.The fans ushered the team off the court with a standing ovation.You have to tip your hat off to Toronto, they are one of the best teams in the East right now, said Wroten.Actually, the best. What does that mean to the Raptors?Nothing, Lowry said. At the end of the day this could turn around in a heartbeat. Were just going out there every day and trying to compete and get better. Toronto is a perfect 5-0 at home, and has the luxury of playing five more in a row at the Air Canada Centre.Philly, which is heading in the opposite direction of Toronto, has now lost 70 of their last 86 regular-season games.As for their spot atop the East, Casey said he wasnt giving it a lot of thought. Its great for the fans. Its great for the players to see that, but its not the most important thing right now, Casey said. Our most important thing is developing a consistent personality.The coach praised DeRozans growth this season.He took what the defence gave him. If they gave him a drive, he took it, he didnt force things, he kicked it out and found shooters and his spacing was good, Casey said. Hes becoming a very efficient, smart, under control veteran-type player that you need to have in that position who can score but also takes what the game gives him.DeRozan led the way with nine points in a sloppy first quarter for both teams. The Raptors shot 69 per cent in the frame and took a 33-20 lead into the second.Valanciunas went to the rim untouched to stretch Torontos lead to 47-28 with seven minutes to go in the half. The Raptors went into the dressing room at halftime up 60-45.DeRozans beautiful spin move in the third quarter put Toronto up by 23 points, then he scored on a putback layup with 4:28 remaining in the frame to give the Raptors a 27-point advantage. Williams drained a long two at the buzzer to send Toronto into the fourth quarter up by 25.The Raptors host Orlando on Tuesday then Chicago on Thursday.NOTES: The last time the Raptors were tied or alone atop the East was Nov. 12, 2004. They were tied with four other teams at 4-2. . . The Raptors swept the Sixers in their three meetings last season for the first time in franchise history. Colorado Rockies Store . If there is one club built to handle an off-field controversy, its the Bill Belichick era Patriots. Even if New Englands offence stumbles a bit out of the gate, their defence can help them stay in games, especially in the AFC East with the Buffalo Bills and New York Jets in the first two weeks. Cheap Rockies Jerseys . The Mets made the announcement Sunday night. Parnell blew a save on opening day against Washington and the next day it was revealed he had partially torn right elbow ligament. https://www.cheaprockiesjerseys.us/ . Tokarski, a somewhat controversial choice -- with his 10 games of NHL experience and all -- to replace an injured Carey Price in Game Two had a night to remember, turning back a Rangers team that was dominating play from the get-go, outshooting the Canadiens 14-4 in the first period and 37-25 overall. Colorado Rockies Pro Shop . Sterling was banned for life and fined US$2.5 million by the NBA on Tuesday for racist comments the league says he made in a recorded conversation. Nash, who plays for the rival L.A. Lakers, spoke as a representative of current NBA players at a press conference assembled by Sacramento mayor and National Basketball Players Association adviser Kevin Johnson. Rockies Jerseys 2020 . The hard-serving 22-year-old from Thornhill, Ont., became the first Canadian to be ranked in the Top 10 on the ATP World Tour thanks to his runner-up performance at Rogers Cup in Montreal.PARIS - Milos Raonic perfectly timed his maiden win over Roger Federer.The seventh-seeded Raonic, who had never beaten the 17-Grand Slam champion in six previous meetings, hit 21 aces and lost only 15 points on his serve to complete a 7-6 (5), 7-5 win to reach the semifinals of the Paris Masters on Friday.It was a must-win match for the big-serving Canadian, who kept alive his chances of qualifying for the ATP Finals after finding his best tennis at the right time, before Kei Nishikori sent him to the year-end tournament in London with a hard-fought win over David Ferrer in the final quarterfinal.Nishikoris 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 victory sealed the field for the Nov. 9-16 tournament at the O2, where he and Raonic will be playing for the first time.Considering all the circumstances around it, I think this was the biggest win for me, said the 23-year-old Raonic.The Wimbledon semifinalist brutally ended Federers 14-match winning streak as the Swiss took a hit in his bid to overtake the top-ranked Novak Djokovic in the race for the year-end No. 1 spot.Djokovic, a two-time champion in Paris, defeated eighth-seeded Andy Murray 7-5, 6-2 to advance to the semifinals against Nishikori.Murray, who booked his spot at the finals in the previous round, played 23 matches over the past six weeks and could not prevent the Serb from winning the final 5 games of the match as fatigue took its toll.I started rushing points at the end, thats for sure. I tried to finish points quite quickly, said Murray, who claimed his third title in five weeks last Sunday in Vienna.Federer, who arrived in Paris on the back of consecutive titles in Shanghai and Basel, only had a few openings against Raonic. He created his sole break point in the 10th game of the second set but the Canadian saved it with an ace.It hurts to lose that way, but he deserves credit for serving the way he did and doing those passing shots the way he had to do it, said Federer.Raonic managed to break Federer in the 11th game with two consecutive sumptuous shots. The Canadiian first hit a stunning forehand return to create a break opportunity and converted it with a crosscourt backhand pass.ddddddddddddFederer, who is looking to clinch the year-end top spot for a record-equaling sixth time, will now take some time off before chasing more points at the finals, then with Switzerland in the Davis Cup final against France next month.Djokovic leads Federer by 670 points in the year-to-date rankings and could add another 640 points to his total with a win in Paris, but Federer has not given up his hopes of finishing at the top.I always thought it was going to get solved in London, Federer said. Whether I am No. 1 at the end of this year, or one or two weeks later next year, it doesnt really matter. Novak seems to be fit, anyway. Now I will have a good preparation for London. Its not that I didnt want to win here, but I knew it was going to be tough from the start.Earlier, Tomas Berdych qualified for the finals —where he will be playing for the fifth straight year — after rallying to beat Kevin Anderson.The fifth-seeded Czech came out on top of a tight match and won 6-7 (4), 6-4, 6-4 to extend his unbeaten record against the South African to 12-0 and will now face Raonic.Berdych, who hit 16 aces to Andersons 12 but struggled with consistency on his first serve, made the decisive break in the ninth game of the third set with a backhand winner down the line.Its probably never going to be like a routine thing, Berdych said about his qualification. I mean, its always just proof of having a great season.Ferrer, who won in Paris in 2012, came two points away from victory but failed to hold on to a 5-2 lead in the tiebreak of the second set. Nishiroki, who enjoyed a breakthrough season in which he claimed four titles and reached the U.S. Open final, is the first Asian-born player to qualify for the season finale.The other players who will feature in London are Stan Wawrinka and U.S. Open winner Marin Cilic. Rafael Nadal withdrew from the event because of appendix surgery. ' ' '