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TSN Raptors Reporter

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TORONTO - Kyle Lowry didn't lose Sunday's game for his team, but he may have been able to win it.

The Raptors' all-star point guard has become one of the NBA's most feared late-game players, however, he cost himself an opportunity to prove why when he got himself ejected for arguing a call midway through the third quarter of a disappointing 104-94 loss to the Sacramento Kings.

"At the end of the day it's my fault," Lowry said after the game. "I've gotta have better composure and I take all responsibility for my actions. It sucks that I couldn't be out there with my teammates, that's the most frustrating part is I let my teammates down, and the organization. So it's more frustrating on that end than anything else."

In the aftermath of Toronto's worst start of the campaign - surrendering a season-high 37 points in the first quarter and trailing by as many as 22 - an agitated Lowry made the error in judgment on a night in which the officiating staff had already demonstrated a quick whistle.

Already unhappy with a no-call on the previous play - Kings point guard Rajon Rondo appeared to push him off while going in for a lay-up - Lowry protested a common foul and was assigned an initial technical. Continuing to plead his case to official Scott Wall, he picked up a second tech and was promptly tossed from the game.

It was a bizarre moment, one you don't see often - particularly involving star players - and one that happened so quick most had no idea what had occurred.

"I didn't see nothing," said teammate DeMar DeRozan, who was also on the court at the time. "I just saw him when he initially got the tech, after that I thought it was over with. Then next thing, I still wasn't sure what was going on after they blew the whistle."

"I don't know what happened," head coach Dwane Casey echoed. "I have to talk to Kyle about it and see what happened. I thought he was trying to ask for an explanation. Usually officials walk away from those situations without throwing out a star player. I heard a lot worse from their team to the officials."

It should be noted, we don't know exactly what was said. Careful with his words to the media post-game, in an effort to avoid an additional fine from the league, Lowry explained that he was looking for clarification on the first tech when he was thrown out. It would seem like he was given the hook prematurely, but Lowry took full responsibility for the ejection, as he should. He knows he made a mistake.

The Raptors, who never led Sunday, were putting together a comeback bid at the time, cutting their deficit to seven. With Lowry unavailable and the injured DeMarre Carroll and Jonas Valanciunas still out, Casey was down three starters in the fourth quarter. James Johnson, Terrence Ross and Patrick Patterson each played the entire frame, while Cory Joseph logged 17 second-half minutes in Lowry's place. Toronto would pull within four on three occasions but could never get over the hump. Perhaps they wouldn't have with Lowry in the lineup either. Perhaps it just wasn't their night.

"It’s totally unacceptable the way we performed tonight," Casey said after the loss. "I’ll take the blame. I guess I didn’t tell them before the game how hard this was going to be. This team is pissed off. They’re upset. They’re going to come here like mad hornets. We came in like we’d done something in Miami. This is a tough league. If we don’t accept that, then it’s on us. Shame on us."

However, Lowry has dug them out of bigger, more insurmountable holes before. Could he have done it Sunday? As their leader, both on and off the court, he owed it to his team, to his teammates to be out there and find out. 

For a player of his importance and in a game where the Raptors desperately needed his resolve, Lowry would have been wise to just walk away. Kings centre DeMarcus Cousins and head coach George Karl had already been whistled for technicals - clearly, this wasn't the night for extended conversation with the referees. That's where Lowry has to be smarter while his teammates and coaches have to step in and save the emotional point guard from himself.

"We know that he's a very passionate player," Patrick Patterson said of Lowry. "He plays with his heart every possession, he's very emotional, he cares about the game and most importantly, he cares about this team.

"We understand whether he gets two techincals, whether he gets one or whether he gets in a fight or whether he gets ejected, we all know that it's his passion, just the desire to want to win so much. He shouldn't feel sorry, he shouldn't feel like you let us down because at the end of the day, he's playing with his heart every single time."

Patterson, like Casey, has been critical of the team in the past for spending a bit too much time chatting with the referees when things don't go their way. The Raptors have developed something of a reputation around the league and their starting point guard is one of the primary culprits. With seven technical fouls on the season, Lowry is now tied for the league lead with Clippers forward Blake Griffin. He was called for just eight all of last year.

Sunday's incident will cost Lowry $6,000 US. The NBA fines players and coaches $2,000 for each of their first five technicals with the cost rising to $3,000 US for the next five, followed by $4,000 apiece for Nos. 11-15. At 16, a one-game suspension is handed down. After 29 games, Lowry is almost halfway there.

"You’ve got to be adults in that situation," Casey said, speaking about his entire team. "That's no excuse. We’ve got to be professional, understand that the officials are not the enemy. The purple jerseys are the enemy."

"We've just got to go out there and leave the refs alone, let our game speak for itself," DeRozan agreed. "If we don't get calls, don't let that deter us from being aggressive. We've still got to go after it and be hopeful for a whistle but we can't let them dictate the game, we've got to take control of it ourself."