Johnson has 21 rebounds as Raptors beat Bobcats

[March 16, 2013]  TORONTO (AP) -- Rudy Gay scored 28 points, Amir Johnson had 12 points and a career-high 21 rebounds, and the Toronto Raptors beat the Charlotte Bobcats 92-78 on Friday night.

Joey Dorsey was the last Toronto player to record 20 rebounds, doing it April 11, 2011, at Milwaukee.

Sebastian Telfair scored 11 points and Jonas Valanciunas had 10 as the Raptors won for just the third time in 10 games. They host Miami on Sunday.

Gerald Henderson, coming off a career-best, 35-point performance in the Bobcats' 100-74 victory over Boston on Tuesday, scored 22 points. Kemba Walker added 20, and Ben Gordon and Josh McRoberts each had 10 for Charlotte, which has won just one of 11 and four of its past 26.

Henderson opened the fourth with a pair of free throws, putting the Bobcats up 70-69, but Toronto reclaimed the lead by scoring the next six points. Charlotte's Jeff Taylor made two from the line with 7:52 left, before a 3-pointer by Terrence Ross and a slam dunk by Gay made it 80-72, forcing the Bobcats to call timeout.

After a missed shot by Gordon, Gay made a step-back jumper to give the Raptors a 10-point lead. Charlotte rookie Michael Kidd-Gilchrist missed a pair of free throws and Ross hit a running bank shot, pushing the lead to 12 and putting the Raptors in control.

Walker scored 11 points in the first, but Gay had 11 for the Raptors, who led 22-17 after one. It was the 13th time this season Toronto has held its opponent below 20 points in the first.

Telfair scored eight in the second, and his pull-up jumper at 6:58 gave the Raptors a 38-25 lead. Gordon scored eight to help Charlotte close the gap to 48-42 at the half.

Gay and Valanciunas each scored four as the Raptors opened the third on a 10-2 run, but the Bobcats answered with a 10-2 run of their own, forcing Toronto to call time with 7:08 left. Henderson scored 11 in the third and Gordon tied it at 68-all on a jumper with 3 seconds left, but a free throw by Telfair gave the Raptors a one-point edge heading into the fourth.

NOTES: The Bobcats are 6-27 on the road. Charlotte's 27 road losses are the most of any Eastern Conference team. Sacramento has an NBA-worst 28 road defeats. ... Johnson recorded the 50th 10-rebound game of his Raptors career, making him the fifth player in franchise history to reach the mark. Chris Bosh (245 games), Antonio Davis (137), Charles Oakley (62) and Donyell Marshall (52) are the others. ... The Raptors have lost their past 10 meetings with the Heat.

[Associated Press; By IAN HARRISON]

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.