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TORONTO - Rudy Gay could barely stand as he prepared to speak to the media minutes after a back-and-forth affair with the Wizards. The Raptors forward, who has been battling the flu since Thursday evening, skipped shoot around Friday morning but played 31 minutes in his teams resilient 96-88 victory at the Air Canada Centre. "I actually came here feeling worse than I did this morning, but there was no stopping me. I was going to play," Gay said, sitting down. "I was out of breath and theres other things that happen when youre sick, but I had to push through it for my team." Gays first-half performance reflected his pain and was just about the only thing that went wrong for Toronto in the opening 24 minutes. The Raptors shot 51 per cent, held Washington to 38 per cent - allowing 11 points on four-of-21 shooting in the second quarter - and took a commanding lead at home despite Gay going just two-of-10 from the field. As he missed a jumper, his team up 14 late in the second quarter, the home fans - unaware of his illness - began to boo. "He had the flu and [high] temperature and gutted it out," coach Dwane Casey said. "I was proud. He struggled a little bit, but down the stretch he came through for us." With Gay struggling, the Raptors good fortune finally ran out in the third quarter, an ongoing concern for the team. The Wizards outscored Toronto 32-15 in the period. John Wall had 18 alone. A 13-point halftime lead quickly became a four-point deficit. Gay had just six points on three-of-13 shooting. "You can see why he got paid all that money," DeMar DeRozan said of Wall, who scored 30 of his game-high 37 in the second half. Toronto had no answer for Wall. Thats when Casey and the Raptors threw the Wizards a curve ball. For the first time in four games, D.J. Augustin checked in to spell Kyle Lowry at the point. Terrence Ross, coming off a couple strong performances, and Steve Novak shared the floor as the Raptors regained control of the game with the help of Gay and their zone defence. "We had to mix it up," Casey admitted. "Our man [defence] wasnt working. We had to go to something else and it had to be our zone. It worked for us, it got them out of rhythm and it got us into rhythm. We work religiously on the zone and guys are still learning it. It worked out for us tonight." After losing his job as the back-up point guard four games into the season, Augustin got a rare opportunity. It was one that he received in an unfortunate circumstance with rookie Dwight Buycks - the acting back-up - away from the team following the passing of his father. Still, it was an opportunity he didnt waste. Augustins first shot was a three-pointer, the first hes made all season after missing nine straight attempts. His quickness and knack for the draw and kick helped turn the momentum back in Torontos favour. "Hes a pro," Casey said of Augustin. "He kind of fell out of the rotation. To his credit, the young man has worked at it. Hes stayed after practice, worked late, come back at night and worked on his shot. It paid off." "Im a firm believer, if youre heart and your mind is in the right place good things will happen for you," said the coach. "And if theyre not, youre sitting on the bench pouting and upset because somebody is getting an opportunity, nothing good is going to happen for you. His heart is in the right place, his mind is in the right place." Augustins resiliency sparked his team and its leading scorer. Gay was a perfect three-for-three in the fourth quarter and added three of his four blocks - one of them of the highlight variety - in the final frame. "It just slowed down," Gay said. "I feel like I was trying to fight through the fact that I was a little sluggish, a little slow. In the fourth quarter, I just let it come to me and it was a lot easier." Exceeding 20 assists in back-to-back games, both victories, the Raptors offence is coming along as they continue to sit atop the Atlantic Division with a 6-7 record. Up next The Raptors will have the day off Saturday, a day of rest Gay plans to take full advantage of, and return to practice on Sunday ahead of their next game at home to the struggling Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday. Black Friday Colts Jerseys . JOHNS, N. Womens Colts Jerseys . Viewers in the Jets region can watch the game on TSN Jets at 6:30pm ct/7:30pm et. The game is also avialable on TSN Radio 1290 in Winnipeg at 7pm ct. http://www.cheapcoltsjerseys.net/.com) - John Wall supplied 24 points and 11 assists in leading the Washington Wizards to a 102-91 win over the New York Knicks on Christmas Day. Wholesale Colts Jerseys . TSNs Farhan Lalji reports the Edmonton Eskimos non-import DT has a workout scheduled with an NFL team next week and isnt expected to sign a deal with any team until then. Cheap Colts Jerseys .Y. - The Buffalo Sabres reassigned forward Sam Reinhart to the WHLs Kootenay Ice on Friday.MINNEAPOLIS - Raptors forward Patrick Patterson is expected to miss at least 7-10 days to rest a ligament injury in his right elbow, the team announced ahead of its game against the Timberwolves Sunday night. It is unclear exactly when Patterson originally sustained the injury, an ulnar collateral sprain to his shooting elbow, but after aggravating it in Fridays win over Sacramento the Raptors medical and coaching staff have decided to shut him down for the time being. "Its never a good time to lose a guy like him because he has been so important to us, offensively and defensively," Dwane Casey said, just over an hour before tip-off at The Target Center. "Its a big [loss] because of how he stretches the floor and the things he brings to the table." Patterson, acquired in a trade from Sacramento on Dec. 9, leads Raptors reserves in scoring, averaging 9.7 points in 39 games with Toronto this season. Playing a minute (per game) less than he was with the Kings prior to the trade, Patterson is averaging nearly three more points, shooting 49 per cent, up from 41 in Sacramento. Hes also grabbing 5.2 rebounds per game and shooting the three-ball at a 44 per cent clip. "Its tough, the way hes been shooting the ball, the way hes been rebounding the ball," said John Salmons. "[He] givees us that dimension coming off the bench.dddddddddddd As a big, [he] kind of changes the opposing teams mindsets when he comes in because hes a different player from Amir (Johnson) and [Jonas Valanciunas]. Its definitely a tough loss for us." The fourth-year forward will be re-evaluated in about a week and the team is hopeful that hell be available to return shortly after that. In the meantime, Tyler Hansbrough figures to absorb most of the 23 minutes Patterson was playing nightly. Bruiser Chuck Hayes and sharpshooter Steve Novak will also be in the mix, depending on match ups. "Everybody stays prepared and guys have done a good job of staying prepared," Casey said, "but [the] next guy up has got to be ready to step in and take up those minutes and produce. "Patricks been a big part of that, that depth at that position," he continued. "For the second unit, the energy he brings to the table, his shooting, his defence, his rebounding, just his overall intensity it really adds a lot to that second unit, which is huge. But again, we still have some other quality guys. Tyler Hansbroughs played a lot of playoff games, Steve Novak is one of our best shooters. So we have different guys that can step in and give us something different. So now is an opportunity." 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