MIAMI—Jonas Valanciunas limped to his seat in the corner of the locker room, plumped his large self into a chair and let out sigh.
He was sore and disappointed and happy at the same time, having played an integral role in a significant Toronto Raptors victory before his night was ended prematurely.
Kyle Lowry was back as the Raptors closer but Valanciunas set an early tone as Toronto pulled away to beat the Miami Heat 95-91 to take a 2-1 lead in their best-of-seven NBA Eastern Conference playoff series.
Game 4 is here Monday; Game 5 is at the Air Canada Centre on Wednesday night.