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TORONTO -- Kyle Lowry scored on an awkward, lurching 31-foot buzzer-beater just before halftime Wednesday, a circus shot that left him sprawled, grinning on his stomach on the Air Canada Centre floor. The Raptors very nearly spoiled what was the point guards finest performance -- in a playoff series full of them -- while holding on for a 115-113 victory over the Brooklyn Nets. Lowry poured in 36 points in the victory that gave the Raptors a 3-2 lead in their best-of-seven playoff series. "He is great, he did a great job," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. "But this game tonight, we have got to learn from it because there are so many learning experiences from tonights game. Having the lead, (handling) prosperity, embracing the pressure. "Kyle. . . 36 points is huge. Huge for us." DeMar DeRozan added 23 points, while Jonas Valanciunas finished with 16 and Greivis Vasquez added 15. Amir Johnson chipped in with 11 points for the Raptors who gave up a 26-point lead in the fourth quarter, making for some tense moments at the ACC, but held on for the victory. When asked to describe the emotions of a fourth quarter that saw the Nets score 44 points, Casey answered: "You wouldnt want to hear it." The series heads back to Brooklyns Barclays Center for Game 6 on Friday, and a victory there would send them to a second-round series against the Miami Heat. A Game 7, if necessary, would be Sunday in Toronto. The Raptors controlled the game through the second and third quarters, when it seemed they could do no wrong, and led by 26 points twice late in the third. They headed into the fourth up 91-69 and appeared poised to cruise to an easy victory, but the Nets had plenty of fight left, tying the game at 101 on a three-pointer by Joe Johnson with 3:16 to go, stunning the crowd. Lowry drained the go-ahead three and then scored on a driving hook shot to put Toronto up by three points with 27 seconds left. A three and foul shot by Anderson pulled the Nets to within a point, but Andray Blatche -- with Lowry running right at him -- turned the ball over on a backcourt violation sealing the Raptors victory. "Hes a helluva player," DeRozan said of Lowry. "Its just that dog in him. . . Every time hes out there on the court, understand, Im going to give my best effort, because I know hes going to do the same." Lowry, playing with his right knee in a protective sleeve after injuring it in Game 3 in Brooklyn, has been solid all series, but took it to another level Wednesday, providing all kinds of highlight-reel plays. There was the diving three at the halftime buzzer. There was the 85-foot outlet pass that found an unmarked Terrence Ross under the basket. But the point guard was particularly big down the stretch, taking charges and slicing through the Nets defence for tough buckets. "When we needed a big shot, No. 7 came through. Kyle was unbelievable," said Raptors forward Chuck Hayes. "Theres nothing more you can say. Hes doing it at the right time on the biggest stage. "We need an answer, we call Kyle. Kyle will figure it out." It was the kind of game the Raptors would have coughed up down the stretch last season, and Casey said the team does take something from holding on for a win. "But we cant live that way. Our history has been pretty good in the fourth quarter, but tonight, for whatever reason, they flipped the switch and flipped the script," the coach said. Joe Johnson led the Nets with 30 points, while Mirza Teletovic added 17, and Deron Williams and Alan Anderson finished with 13 apiece. The teams split the first two games in Toronto, and did the same in Games 3 and 4 in Brooklyn. A Game 7, if necessary, would be Sunday in Toronto. "One game at a time and we have to take care of home," said Pierce. "I think we will play better on Friday at home and we will see them back here on Sunday." The capacity ACC crowd of 20,393 that included Drake and rapper 50 Cent -- who dipped his head when the camera was on him to show fans his "Northern Uprising" hat -- was loud all game long, from the moment the fans sang along to O Canada to the final buzzer. The arena was a sea of white, as fans wore their white "We The North" T-shirts. They mocked the Nets by chanting "Broo-klyn!" the traditional chant at the Barclays Center. The Nets even took note, posting on the teams official Twitter account: ".Nets fans take note- this is what a playoff crowd sounds like..set your DVD and take notes .RAPTORSvNETS." Despite the rain and chilly temperatures, some 4,500 fans jammed into Maple Leaf Square outside the ACC to watch the game on the big screen. They were given rain ponchos. Some 1,200 fans were also given black and gold OVO/Raptors lint-rollers, a nod to Drake using a lint-roller while sitting courtside during Game 2. An array of Toronto sports celebrities took the stage, including Toronto FCs Jermain Defoe, Michael Bradley and Julio Cesar, and former Raptors Morris Peterson and Jerome Williams. "Ive never seen support like this. This is special," Defoe said in an on-stage interview. Cesar, wearing a No. 7 Raptors jersey, yelled "Lets go Raptors!" This series has been spirited from Day 1 when Raptors GM Masai Ujiri took the stage and dropped his famous F-bomb about Brooklyn. An enterprising man outside the ACC on Wednesday was selling F--- Brooklyn buttons, three for $5. Fans were wearing the same on T-shirts at the game. Johnson led the way with nine points for Toronto in a first quarter that saw neither team lead by more than six. The Raptors ended the quarter with a 10-2 run capped by a Lowry three-pointer that put Toronto up 28-25 going into the second. The Raptors trailed by four points with just over five minutes to go in the second, but finished the quarter on a 26-4 run capped by Lowrys three, part of a 13-point performance in the quarter for the point guard. The Raptors went into the locker-room at halftime buoyed by a 62-44 lead. The third quarter has been the Raptors nemesis in this series, but not so on Wednesday. They didnt take their foot off the pedal, shooting 58 per cent to twice go ahead by 26 points. Toronto went into the fourth with a 91-69 lead. Christian Villanueva Jersey . The first baseman hit a two-run homer in the top of the ninth inning to lead the Mets to a thrilling come-from-behind 3-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers. Craig Stammen Jersey . You can watch all the action on TSN and TSN GO beginning at 8:30pm et/5:30pm pt. Minnesota dropped the first two tests of this best-of-seven set at Chicagos United Center and was outscored by a combined 9-3 margin in those setbacks. However, the Wild righted themselves at home by taking Game 3 by a 4-0 count before knotting the series at two games apiece with Fridays 4-2 triumph at Xcel Energy Center. http://www.padresrookiestore.com/Padres-...ss-Kids-Jersey/. Cincinnati has lost back-to-back games in overtime, wasting a chance to take a commanding lead in their division. Eric Hosmer Jersey . Span, Danny Espinosa and Adam LaRoche had two hits apiece as Washington won the final two games of the series. The Nationals improved to 3-7 against Atlanta. They increased their division lead over the Braves to 1 1/2 games. Hunter Renfroe Jersey .J. -- Travis Zajac of the New Jersey Devils took a lot of grief considering his scored the first of his career-best three goals just 12 seconds into a crucial game against the Florida Panthers. DUNEDIN, Fla. -- Brandon Morrow allowed five runs and six hits over three innings in the Toronto Blue Jays 6-4 loss Wednesday to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Morrow was making his second appearance since a season-ending forearm injury last May. On Feb. 28, the right-hander gave up two hits and one run in two relief innings. "The important thing, I felt good again," Morrow said. "Forearm is feeling really good. I felt loose again. I felt good with my breaking stuff. Fastball command kind of put me in a hole a couple times." Morrow struck out two, walked one, hit a batter and threw a wild pitch. "Hes big," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "In a lot of ways hes probably the most important guy, because we expected a lot out of him last year. Hes got as good an arm as anybody. When hes on, when hes healthy, hes been a good big league pitcher. If he can fill that void, bounce back and have a full season out there where he doesnt go on the DL and you get his 30-plus starts, that will be big for us." Travis Snider had a first-inning RBI single and a two-run homer in the third off Morrow. Snider spent time on the disabled list last season with a left big toe injury. "Travis worked extremely hard this winter," Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle said. "Hes moving so much better. Now thats he healthy and physically ready to go, well see where he can take us." Edwin Encarnacion had a two-run double for the Blue Jays. STARTING TIME Blue Jays: Mark Buehrle will go against Pitttsburghs Gerrit Cole when the two teams play again Thursday in Bradenton.dddddddddddd Pirates: Jeff Locke was scratched from his start because of right side tightness. The Pirates believe the injury is a minor one. Locke gave up one hit in two scoreless innings last Thursday against the New York Yankees. The left-hander won eight straight starts in the first half of last season and made the NL All-Star team. But, he went 2-5 with a 6.12 ERA over his final 12 starts and was shut down in September. Jay Jackson, who filled in for Locke, gave up one hit in two scoreless innings. The 26-year old right-hander, signed to a minor league contract in December, pitched at Double-A and Triple-A for Miami last year. Pittsburgh starters have not allowed an earned run in five consecutive games, a span of 10 innings. TRAINERS ROOM Blue Jays: Closer Casey Janssen, out with a sore right shoulder, played catch for the second straight day. Outfielder Colby Rasmus sat out his fourth consecutive game due to a stiff neck. REASSIGNMENTS The Blue Jays sent right-hander Tomo Ohka, left-hander Juan Perez, and catchers Derrick Chung and Jack Murphy to their minor league camp this week. Ohka, who last pitched in the major leagues in 2009, agreed to a minor league contract with the Blue Jays in December. The 37-year-old was 51-68 for Boston (1999-01), Montreal (2001-04), Washington (2005), Milwaukee (2005-06), Toronto (2007) and Cleveland (2009). He has played in Japan for Yokohama (1995-98 and 2010-11) and Toyama (2013). ' ' '