TORONTO – The first NBA Finals game outside the United States was a party 24 years in the making.
Then the Raptors’ Pascal Siakam and his teammates really gave Toronto something to celebrate.
Siakam scored a playoff career-high 32 points and the Raptors made a smashing debut with their performance in Game 1 of the title set, beating the Golden State Warriors 118-109 Thursday night.
The Raptors hardly looked like newcomers to professional basketball’s biggest stage, controlling the action most of the way against a Golden State team beginning its fifth straight NBA Finals appearance.
“I think we did pretty good job at home,” Siakam said. “The fans are amazing, man. I just want to say that. From coming out for warmup to the end of the game, it was just the support and then going crazy. I’ve never seen anything like that.”