MEMPHIS - Rudy Gay has played 244 games in Memphiss FedExForum, perhaps none as vindicating as this one. Colin Kaepernick Jersey . Coming off the worst shooting night of his career - one of the worst in league history - in a devastating loss on Monday, the Raptors forward bounced back at an opportune time for both himself and his team. For the first time since the three-team trade that sent Gay from the Grizzlies, the only NBA team he had ever known, to Toronto last winter, the 27-year-old returned to Memphis on Wednesday and left with a convincing victory that the Raptors sorely needed. "I dont think it was for me as much as we needed it anyway," Gay said, deflecting attention off himself moments after he scored 23 points on 8-of-18 shooting in Torontos 103-87 upset win over the reigning Western Conference finalists in Memphis. "For me personally, it was a little emotional, but other than that, especially coming off the Houston loss, we needed this game." After shooting an abysmal 11-for-37 from the field in the double-overtime loss to the Rockets, Gay eased into his return. He began the game with a concerted effort to get his teammates involved, but when he failed to convert on any of his first four field goal attempts, the look on faces around the arena spoke louder than words. Here we go again, everyone thought. But then Gay did what he does best. He kept shooting. This time he got into a rhythm and when hes locked in, as Grizzlies fans remember, he becomes an exceptionally dangerous scorer. "After last game, I just wanted to get my teammates involved first, move the ball around, get the offence moving and I picked my spots where I wanted to be aggressive," he said. "I missed shots," he acknowledged of the slow start. "Ive missed shots before, last game I missed a lot of shots, so its nothing. Im one of those guys that, if I go out there and miss two, Im going to make sure I make the third." He missed fou,r but then he made the next one and then the shot after that. In fact, he hit four straight, three of them from beyond the arc and just like that, the Raptors were firing on all cylinders. They led by as many as 15 in the first half, 11 at the break. The Raptors offence that looked so terrible in Houston followed Gays lead, as you would imagine. As he looked to distribute, so did DeMar DeRozan. Both players had four assists and Kyle Lowry added six in his best game of the season. As a team, Toronto had 11 assists in 24 minutes, one more than they accumulated in 58 minutes two nights prior. "Its a lot easier because we drew so much attention," said DeRozan, who had 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting. It was the first of nine games this season where both he and Gay were effective at the same time. "One of us has to sacrifice. If we draw two or three guys, we have to kick it to the next man and hell create for the next player. Thats how we have to play. Once we play like that consistently, its definitely going to be hard to guard us." The start of the third quarter brought on another here we go again moment. The Grizzlies, as good teams do, made their run led by the explosive Mike Conley, who scored 12 of his game-high 29 points in the period. With 15 minutes left to play, the home team had tied it up at 70. We have seen this narrative before and we know how it plays out, generally. Perhaps the Raptors have learned something from heartbreaking collapses of the past. Perhaps it was an outlier. But they refused to back down from the Grizzlies, a quality and always-intimidating opponent. They ended the third quarter strong and, by the time the fourth rolled along, the game belonged to Gay. It was his night regardless of whether or not his humility would allow him to accept it. "Thats where you find that extra motivation," DeRozan said, mindful of what this game represented for his teammate. "Every game you look for it somewhere, somehow and tonight we played a lot for him. We knew how much he wanted to come back here and win." The reception Gay received as he was introduced to the fans before tip-off was primarily a positive one, but by the time the game was out of reach for the home team, they certainly made him feel like an opponent. As Gay drilled a 19-footer midway through the fourth, giving his team their largest lead of the evening at 19, boos rained down from the stands. "Thats when I realized I dont play here anymore," he joked. What does this game mean in the larger scheme of things? No one knows. The Raptors, at least for now, hope to be a winning team and to do that theyll need to steal games like this. Sure, you can excuse them for cowering to superior teams - Miami, Indiana, Houston - but at some point you need to win one youre not supposed to. They did that on Wednesday and theyll need to do more of it to reach their ultimate goal. "It was a great night for our team," said Lowry, who finished with 21 points. "The effort we showed tonight is how we should play every night." Getting to the line The Raptors set the tone early in the game, aggressively attacking the rim and earning the benefit of the doubt from the officials the rest of the night. "This is a very physical team and we had to be the aggressor," said Lowry, another former Grizzly. "Their physicality can take anybody out of the game, so our goal tonight was to be really aggressive and try to get to the basket and get to the free throw line as much as we could." Toronto outscored the Grizzlies 33-11 at the line, outshooting them 39-17 from the stripe. Quiet, consistent production from Ross Last season, very little of what rookie Terrence Ross did was quiet. He would exchange several ineffective minutes on the floor - on both ends - for one highlight-calibre dunk that would almost mask the inconsistency that held him back as a player. For the second straight game, Ross has been quietly useful. Hes been efficient offensively, shooting three-of-five, where he may be starting to understand that sometimes less is more and, most importantly, hes been a standout on defence. "Hes very poised out there," Dwane Casey said of Ross, who contributed eight points in 20 minutes off the bench. "Hes growing as a player and thats what this year is about for him." Up next After playing six of their first nine games on the road to begin the season, the Raptors happily return home for six of their next seven. Theyll host the Chicago Bulls at the Air Canada Centre Friday evening, a game you can catch live on TSN 1050 Radio beginning at 7:00 pm et. Dwight Clark Jersey . The 33-year-old right-hander was 14-7 with a career-low 3.64 ERA in 28 starts for his hometown San Diego Padres last season. He joins a rotation that includes NL Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw, Chad Billingsley, Ted Lilly and fellow newcomer Chris Capuano, who signed a $10-million, two-year deal last week. Andy Lee Jersey . The All-Star point guard, sidelined for the past six months with a knee injury, was set to return to the Oklahoma City Thunder lineup for Sunday nights home game against the Phoenix Suns, weeks earlier than expected.WASHINGTON -- No, confetti didnt fall from the rafters, and theres no parade scheduled for Pennsylvania Avenue. But John Wall pumped his right arm and smiled broadly as he dribbled out the clock, and the first word out of Bradley Beals mouth when he addressed the crowd said it all: "Finally." The Washington Wizards celebrated what they hope is the end of mediocrity Monday night, moving above .500 for the first time in more than four years with a 100-90 win over the Portland Trail Blazers. "Its only one game over, but, yeah, its a big relief," said Wall, who has endured more than his share of Wizards frustration since his selection as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 draft. "But the main thing is weve got bigger goals to try to keep winning games and try to keep getting better and try not to go back down -- so we wont have to have this talk again." Wall scored 22 points, and Trevor Ariza added 20 and had another solid defensive game for the Wizards, who hadnt had a winning record since beating the New Jersey Nets to improve to 2-1 on Halloween in 2009. Washington committed six turnovers while forcing 16 from Portland, and Wall and Co. didnt look back after Kevin Seraphin led a 12-0 run that put the Wizards up by 17 early in the fourth quarter. "Its great to finally get this team over the hump," Beal said. No one on the current Wizards roster was on the team when it was last above .500. They had lost this season at 0-0, 9-9, 14-14, 19-19, 20-20, 21-21 and 22-22, and the hurdle became such a bugaboo that players starting declaring the subject taboo when reporters asked about it. Coach Randy Wittman at one point cautioned against thoughts that "all of a sudden fairy dust is going to fall on us if we get over .500." Sticking with that theme, Wittman wasnt about to consider having slightly more "Ws" than "Ls" as much of an accomplishment. "It aint out of the way. How many more games have we got to play?" Wittman said. "You act like that was the last daggum game. ... If were going to learn to be a good basketball team, we have to do this every night, no matter who youre playing." The Wizards aare 120-236 since that Oct. Frank Gore Black Jersey. . 31 victory 51 months ago, a .336 winning percentage better than only Minnesota and Sacramento over that span. The streak of futility fell just a few days shy of spanning an entire Winter Olympiad. "Its great that were 24-23 now, but I dont want them to focus on a number," Wittman said. "I want them to focus on the act of why youre 24-23. Thats where you keep it going. I want this team to get on a run. They havent ever been on a run." Another way to put the quest to move above mediocrity in perspective: The Trail Blazers would have to lose their next 20 in a row just to fall back to .500. But the Wizards have now topped two of the Wests top teams in back-to-back games, having taken care of Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday. Washingtons first playoff berth since 2008 is well within reach, especially in the watered-down East. The Trail Blazers arrived averaging a league-best 108.3 points and shot 61 per cent in the first half, but Portland was 6 for 17 from the field with seven turnovers in the decisive third quarter as Washingtons defence again held its own against a more celebrated lineup. Seraphin went 7 for 10 from the field and scored a season-high 19 points, making his mark by scoring the last four points of the third quarter and the first four points of the fourth. He followed a turnaround hook shot with a jumper to put the Wizards ahead 86-69. The Trail Blazers cut the deficit to six on a layup by LaMarcus Aldridge with 1:12 remaining, but Nene answered with a jumper to give the Wizards a 98-90 lead. Damian Lillard scored 25 points, and Aldridge had 20 to lead the Trail Blazers, who have lost four straight road games. They could care less about Washingtons over-.500 benchmark, but they know one thing for certain: The Wizards are a better team these days. "Give Washington credit," Portland coach Terry Stotts said. "They are playing well, theyve beaten some good teams, and they are playing with a lot of confidence." Notes: G Garrett Temple committed three of Washingtons six turnovers. ... Wizards F Trevor Booker missed the game due to personal reasons. ' ' '