For most folks taking in the Toronto Raptors-Washington Wizards contest last night, they might not have even realized they were witnessing NBA history.
In a mid-March game between two of the teams with the worst records in the NBA, it wasn’t exactly set up to be one for the ages.
But on their way to the 119-104 win, the Raptors set a single-game franchise record for 73 rebounds on the night.
While the Raptors have been in the league since 1995, the historic nature of their performance dates back a little further.
As per Stathead, it’s actually the best single-game performance by any NBA team since 1992 in a non-overtime game. Facing off against the Charlotte Hornets on March 7, 1992, the New York Knicks picked up 75 rebounds in a 107-78 rout, led by 20 from Hall of Famer Patrick Ewing.
Four Toronto players picked up at least 10 boards on the night, with Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, AJ Lawson, and Orlando Robinson all registering in double digits. It was the first time in franchise history that has occured, also per Stathead, with the team having three 10-rebound players on 37 separate occasions.
“It would not be fair to say that we did anything different today than we do the whole season,” Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic said. “Yes, we are focusing a lot on offensive rebounding, and we also focusing on offensive rebounding in many games.”
Toronto also shot 43-109 on the day from the field, which Rajakovic credits the team’s tough shooting night as a catalyst to the team’s 28 offensive rebounds.
“I don’t think it was just the message tonight. Also, we did not shoot the ball necessarily well. We got a big number of shots up, so those were opportunities for us to be more aggressive and then get those,” he added.
Given that Toronto currently ranks 14th in the NBA with 44.5 rebounds per game — and their next closest performance was 56 this year— it might be a long time before that record gets broken once again.
John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
