The Toronto Raptors did what they had to do Wednesday night, earning one of their most impressive wins of the season to keep their flickering playoff chances alive.
Minutes later, that hope - and a disappointing season - came to an end.
DeMar DeRozan had a career-high 24 points as the Raptors beat the New York Knicks 131-113 but fell short of reaching the NBA post-season. Toronto needed a win, combined with a Chicago loss, to overtake the Bulls for the eighth and final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference.
Toronto (40-42) handled its business in entertaining fashion. With injured forward Chris Bosh (facial fractures) watching from the sidelines in what could be his final game as a Toronto Raptor, his team responded by setting a season high in scoring and field-goal percentage.
But less than 10 minutes after the final horn sounded at the Air Canada Centre, the Bulls spoiled the celebration with a 98-89 win over the Charlotte Bobcats. Chicago will open the playoffs against the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers, while the Raptors will miss the post-season for the seventh time in nine seasons.
"It's heartbreaking," said forward Sonny Weems, who had 18 points. "Some things happen that we can't control, and now we have to get ready for next season."
Andrea Bargnani equalled DeRozan with 24 points for Toronto, which swept the season series against New York. Amir Johnson added 21, Jose Calderon 15 and Marco Belinelli 14 in the victory.
Raptors head coach Jay Triano said his team checked in on the Chicago-Charlotte game at halftime. He knew Toronto was in trouble when he noticed that the Bobcats were giving their starters plenty of rest, having already clinched the No. 7 seed in the East.
"We kind of knew it wasn't going to get too much closer when they were resting some of their guys," said Triano. "For some reason I had a good feeling coming into tonight ...
"We did what we were supposed to do and we didn't get any help."
Johnson, who excelled in a starting role after Bosh went down in a loss to Cleveland eight days ago, said losing the team's leading scorer (24 points per game) and rebounder (10.8) was too much to overcome down the stretch.
"Absolutely," said Johnson. "We fought hard, but when you lose your top player, that kinds of hurts your team."
Bosh walked through the locker-room after the game but didn't speak to reporters.
Bill Walker had a career-best 28 points to lead the Knicks (29-53), who went out meekly in their ninth consecutive losing season. Danilo Gallinari made five threes and finished with 22 points, while David Lee added 19 points, 11 rebounds and five assists.
For the Knicks, Wednesday represented the final game in blue-and-orange for several players. The roster will likely be overhauled in the off-season as the Knicks hope to use tens of millions of dollars in cap space to lure at least one free-agent superstar to Madison Square Garden.
"I thanked (the players)," said head coach Mike D'Antoni. "It's tough on them. It hasn't been easy on anybody, (there are) a lot of guys with contracts up and no one really knows. They know what they got into, as I did.
"They're good guys. They're disappointed with the season."
After scoring 73 points in the first half - one shy of their season high - the Raptors ran into some trouble in the third quarter. With Hedo Turkoglu on the bench after picking up his fourth foul, the Knicks reduced a nine-point halftime deficit to four on a Walker three-pointer.
Toronto extended its lead to nine, withstood two more Knicks rallies and reached the 100-point mark on a Calderon three-pointer with three minutes left in the third. DeRozan added 11 points in the quarter as the Raptors led 105-94 entering the fourth.
A DeRozan layup padded the lead to 15 points, and he added a one-handed tomahawk dunk moments later to the delight of 18,333 fans at the ACC. The Knicks didn't challenge the rest of the way.
Along with the emergence of his best friend Weems, DeRozan represented one of the few bright spots for the Raptors this season, overcoming early struggles to emerge as a solid player off the bench. He said his first pro season was an eye-opener.
"It was a lot of ups and downs, but I didn't look at it as a negative," said DeRozan. "I think I learned a lot this season, so next year I know what to (expect)."
After sitting at 31-24 on Feb. 20, a 9-18 tailspin to end the season was the Raptors' undoing, dropping them from fifth to ninth in the conference standings. The Bulls took advantage, finishing the season on a 10-4 run.
"I give Chicago credit," said Triano. "They played some of the same teams we did ... Cleveland, and Boston, and they beat Charlotte twice. They got their (injured) guys back and they made a good run, and credit to them for getting into the playoffs."
Notes: Fans chanted "We Want More CB4" between the first and second quarters. Bosh, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, acknowledged the chant with a wave. ... Bosh enters the off-season as the franchise leader in points (9,275) and rebounds (4,450). Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki is the only other active player to lead his team in points and rebounds all-time. ... Raptors G Jarrett Jack threw himself into the crowd behind the Raptors bench in the fourth quarter, ending up about 10 rows deep. He high-fived fans on his way back to the court. ... The Raptors scored a franchise-best 8,534 points this season, surpassing the old record of 8,256 set four seasons ago. ... Lee entered Wednesday averaging 25.7 points, 16.7 rebounds and four assists in three meetings with Toronto this season. He finished the year with 53 double-doubles.
