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DeRozan scores 40 to lead Raptors over Pistons in season opener

Xinhua, October 27, 2016 Adjust font size:

DeMar DeRozan scored 40 points to lead the Toronto Raptors to a 109-91 season opening victory over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night in the NBA.

In front of a sold-out Air Canada Centre crowd of 19,800 fans, DeRozan scored a team- history high 40 points, eclipsing Vince Carter's 39 that opened the 2003-04 season.

"Tonight I got good looks and my teammates put me in good positions to be able to knock down shots," said DeRozan following the victory. "I was just trying to play in the flow of the game," he added.

The 27-year-old DeRozan scored 21 points in the third quarter on 10-for-13 shooting from the field. The two-time All-Star finished the game shooting 17-for-27 from the field and a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe.

"It was probably one of the most efficient games of him taking what the game gave him," Raptors head coach Dwane Casey told the media after the game.

Jonas Valanciunas recorded a career-high 32 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. According to Elias Sports Bureau, the duo of DeRozan and Valanciunas are the first teammates in NBA history with respective 40 and 30-point performances to start a season.

Despite his strong performance on the offensive end, Casey believes DeRozan's improvement on defense during his summer stint with the gold medal-winning U.S. Olympic team will benefit the team the most.

"He can get down and guard and defend, he's done a great job with his body," said Casey. "He's gotten bigger and stronger with his shoulders to take hits and bumps defensively to get into people and not get pushed around," Casey pointed out.

Fresh off signing the second richest contract in NBA history, a five-year 139 million U.S. dollar deal in the offseason, the team hopes DeRozan's continued development will be enough to lead the team to its first-ever NBA title. Endite