BROOKLYN - With just over four minutes to go in the third quarter, Amir Johnson sat on the bench, wincing in pain as he watched the game and, in effect, his teams season slip away. Shane Doan Jersey . That seemed like an appropriate time to get a head start on the Raptors playoff obituary. Their first-half onslaught had evaporated, the 17-point lead was no more and Johnson, like Kyle Lowry, was battling foul trouble and a myriad of ailments. At that point the momentum, if you believe in such things, belonged to the hosting Brooklyn Nets. This upstart Raptors team had been in similar situations throughout the season - fighting for their lives, backs up against the wall - but, tied going into the fourth quarter of a critical Game 4, this would be their biggest and most revealing test yet. They had a new audience, a brighter spotlight, a bigger stage and 12 minutes to prove something that they themselves already knew. "Everybody has something on their body that definitely hurts," said Johnson, who injured his knee in a failed attempt to draw a charge on the Nets Paul Pierce, "but we keep playing, we keep fighting. Its not the time to hold back now. Weve got to keep going." The Raptors held Brooklyn without a field goal for the final six minutes, without a point for the last five and in doing so they showed more character than they had at any point in this series. "Thats just us, man," DeMar DeRozan said after scoring a team-high 24 points in the Raptors scrappy 87-79 win on Sunday, tying their best-of-seven opening round series up at 2-2. "Were definitely resilient, were not going to give up until the games over. Were going to fight through." Just as things were at their most bleak - Lowry had picked up his fifth foul and Johnson, still on the bench, was also saddled with five - the Raptors got serious. Slightly out of character, DeRozan drew a charge, then he took another. Was that a first? "Nah, I dont think so," the all-star guard said with a smirk on his face as Lowry, sitting next to him, chuckled. "I hope its not." Then Lowry, throwing caution to the wind, reached in and poked the ball away from Pierce. Johnson followed suit and in a familiar scene - one that earned him his fifth foul and a sore knee earlier - stepped in to take the charge. Both Lowry and Johnson were one foul away from spending the rest of the game watching from the sidelines, one hit to the knee away from spending the rest of the night on the trainers table. Neither player seemed willing to allow his team to lose. "Theyre fighters," said Jonas Valanciunas. "Theyre soldiers. They go on the court anyway. So its good when you have those types of guys on your team." Everyone is dealing with bumps and bruises to some degree at this point in the season. Who wasnt limping out there tonight, Valanciunas was asked. "Julyan Stone," the young centre said with a smile. But there was Lowry, limping up and down the court between possessions, lying next to the bench to stay loose when he wasnt in the game. He had tweaked his reoccurring right knee injury early in Game 3, on top of all the nicks hes accumulated over a long season, but he gutted it out again. Where would his team be without him? "We would have probably got in a fight if I tried to take him out of the game," coach Dwane Casey joked. "Hes dealing with a lot right now and he came through with flying colours. He fought through foul trouble, a little bit of adversity throughout the game and still came through.” Lowry scored 12 of his 22 points in the second half and once again, with the game on the line, his team resembled their point guard, their leader, their best player. "I am not surprised at all that Kyle was limping around, hes a warrior, hes everything to this team," said Chuck Hayes. "The guy gives it his all, we just feed off of him. Then we tease him about it after, hes going to have probably every ice bag in here on his body." "We dont give up man, were some fighters," Hayes continued. "We play like the underdog, we were the underdog probably all year, including this series. I dont know, we just go out there and play for each other." Go ahead, underestimate them, disrespect them and count them out. They feed off it. If respect is earned in the postseason, perhaps the Raptors are starting to turn heads. "We understand that this is a group thats not going to back down, thats not going to give up," Pierce said after the game. "Theyve earned a lot of peoples respect around the league. Just because you dont have a lot of playoff experience doesnt mean youre not a good team. You can learn on the fly." Theyve done just that, now its a whole new ball game. The Raptors will return to Toronto and their raucous crowd at the Air Canada Centre after reclaiming home-court advantage for what has become a best-of-three set, beginning with Wednesdays Game 5. Have they played their best basketball? "No," Lowry and DeRozan answered in unison, but there is a growing sense of belief in the room coinciding with an ambiance of nervousness that spread throughout Barclays Center as Toronto hit back on Sunday. The Raptors may not be in over their heads after all. "Were on a mission," Casey said. "Were not just here trying to win a game. We want to make sure we stay poised, stay focused on our business. Thats what weve been about all year." Peter Mueller Jersey . 1 Pete Sampras. Speaking ahead of an exhibition match against Andre Agassi in London on March 3, Sampras said on a conference call Wednesday that he is impressed by Federers longevity. Dale Hawerchuk Jersey .55 million euros (US$18.6 million) to Spanish tax authorities on Monday to cover any potential irregularities in its signing of Neymar, all the while maintaining its innocence of the fraud charges levied against it. https://www.cheapcoyotes.com/828z-jason-demers-jersey-coyotes.html . 1 player in the world. So Duval gutted it out Thursday at the Byron Nelson Championship despite the pain from a muscle issue in his right elbow, a day after his stepson had to drive him because he couldnt even use that arm.Handing Johnny Football a clipboard and baseball cap has worked out nicely for the Cleveland Browns.Rookie coach Mike Pettines decision to start Brian Hoyer instead of first-round pick Johnny Manziel wasnt popular among fans, but the Browns are 5-3 and in the mix in the AFC North.Hoyer has rebounded from knee surgery to put his hometown team in position to make a run at its first playoff appearance since 2002 and post only its second winning season in the last 12 years.Were doing a good job of finding ways to win, Browns four-time All-Pro tackle Joe Thomas said. Part of that is having a quarterback whos making the clutch throws.For picking Hoyer over Manziel, Pettine gets our vote for best coaching decision in the first half.Here are more unofficial, offbeat awards at midseason.WORST COACHING DECISIONRex Ryan sticking with Geno Smith after benching him at halftime of the New York Jets 31-0 loss to San Diego in Week 5. The Jets were 1-4 and Ryan couldve given Michael Vick a chance to rescue the season at that point. Instead, he gave Smith three more starts before pulling him against Buffalo on Oct. 26.BEST FREE-AGENT SIGNINGDenver signing four-time All-Pro DeMarcus Ware after he was cut by Dallas. Ware already has eight sacks, and has improved the run defence along with the pass rush.HonourablE MENTIONS: Wide receiver Steve Smith Sr. (Baltimore); cornerback Brandon Flowers (San Diego); wide receiver Brandon LaFell (New England); safety Malcolm Jenkins (Philadelphia).WORST FREE-AGENT SIGNINGDetroit signing kicker Alex Henery to replace rookie Nate Freese, who missed four of seven attempts in three games. Henery lasted two games, missing all three of his field-goal attempts in a 17-14 loss to Buffalo on Oct. 5. Freese, Henery and new Lions kicker Matt Prater are 3 for 13 from beyond 40 yards. David Akers was 7 for 10 from that distance for Detroit in 2013 but didnt get a contract offer.HonourablE MENTIONS: Offensive tackle Michael Oher (Tennessee); running back Maurice Jones-Drew and defensive end LaMarr Woodley (Oakland); running back Toby Gerhart (Jacksonville).BEST TRADEPhiladelphia acquiring running back Darren Sproles from New Orleans for a fifth-round pick. Sproles has 472 yards rushing and receiving and three TDs. He also has a punt return for a TD.WORST TRADESeattle received only a conditional pick from the Jets for wide receivver Percy Harvin after trading a 2013 first-round and seventh-round draft choices and a 2014 third-rounder to get him two years ago. Christian Dvorak Jersey. BEST PLAYCALLSt. Louis coach Jeff Fisher called a fake punt on a 4th-and-3 from the Rams 18 with a 28-26 lead and 2:55 left in the game. Punter Johnny Hekker tossed an 18-yard pass to Benny Cunningham and the Rams upset Seattle.WORST PLAYCALLPhiladelphia coach Chip Kelly calling a run out of the shotgun formation on 3rd-and-inches from the Cardinals 2 in a tie game late in the fourth quarter. LeSean McCoy was stopped for no gain and the Eagles kicked a go-ahead field goal. Arizona answered with a 75-yard TD pass to win it.BEST PLAYSt. Louis returner Stedman Bailey had a 90-yard touchdown on a trick punt return that had the Seahawks thinking another player was going to field the punt. Tavon Austin drew most defenders to the opposite side of the field by staggering under the imaginary ball. That allowed Bailey a clear path down the sideline after fielding the punt across the field.WORST PLAYSan Franciscos Colin Kaepernick fumbling on a quarterback sneak at the goal line on the final play in a 13-10 loss to the Rams.BEST GAMEIn a Super Bowl rematch, the Seahawks again beat the Broncos but needed overtime to do it. Marshawn Lynchs 6-yard run gave Seattle a 26-20 win and prevented Peyton Manning from touching the ball in OT.WORST GAMETampa Bay trailed Atlanta 56-0 going into the fourth quarter of a 56-14 loss. The Buccaneers have five losses by less than a touchdown but two losses by a 104-31 margin.BEST PERFORMANCEPittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger had 522 yards passing, 40 completions, and six touchdowns to help the Steelers beat Indianapolis 51-34.WORST PERFORMANCESmith tossing three interceptions on three straight series before getting yanked against the Bills.BEST COMEBACK PERFORMANCEJeremy Maclin returning from ACL surgery to lead the Eagles with 45 catches, 790 yards receiving and eight TDs.WORST COMEBACK PERFORMANCEMatt Schaub hasnt rejuvenated his career in Oakland. He couldnt beat out rookie Derek Carr in training camp and has thrown one pass for the winless Raiders.___AP Sports Writer Tom Withers in Cleveland contributed to this report.___AP NFL websites: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL___Follow Rob Maaddi on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_RobMaaddi ' ' '