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Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) controls the ball against Sacramento Kings guard Yogi Ferrell (3) during the third quarter at Scotiabank Arena.Nick Turchiaro/USA TODAY Sports via Reuters

Kawhi Leonard took another night of rest Tuesday night, but the Toronto Raptors handled the Sacramento Kings without their superstar, rolling to a third straight victory, 120-105.

Six different Raptors scored in double digits, led by 19 apiece from Fred VanVleet and Kyle Lowry, and 18 from Pascal Siakam. Serge Ibaka and the resurgent C.J. Miles each contributed 15, while Norman Powell had 11.

Leonard sat out the game, and won’t play Wednesday in Indiana either, as the team continues to carefully monitor his playing time and make sure he’s not overworked. That will make four games missed in a row for Leonard, who is averaging 27.6 points a night over 27.39 minutes, along with 3.1 assists and 7.9 rebounds.

“It’s a medical decision from our medical team. And it’s just a load-management thing still. I think he’s played what, 35, 36 games now after playing nine a year ago,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. “It was just a chance to get him some extended rest. We’re sitting him out this back-to-back and he’s definitely going to play Friday in Houston.”

Nurse said Leonard is not injured. The Raptors’ sports-medicine team is merely trying to make sure the superstar is healthy when it counts most – in the playoffs. He appeared on the Raptors bench in the second half.

“It’s not only Kawhi. It’s other guys. We’ll continue to manage their load,” Nurse said. “That’s half the reason we don’t have practice some days and don’t have shoot-around some days. We’re trying to rejuice and re-energize and kinda play the long game here.”

OG Anunoby missed a fourth straight game, for a personal reason. He, too, is expected back Friday.

The Kings, who are trying to make the playoffs for the first time since 2006, came to town on the second night of a back-to-back. They were without some key players – most notably their speedy sophomore star, point guard De’Aaron Fox (toe), who typically dictates the squad’s frenetic, ball-moving offence. Even without Fox, it was a fast-paced game with lots of ball movement for both teams.

Nurse seemed to be altering his rotation a little, going 11 players deep before the first half was even over. He called on Chris Boucher earlier than usual, and newly acquired Patrick McCaw as well.

Miles, who missed five games earlier this month – some for hip soreness, others by the coach’s decision – put up eight points in eight first-half minutes. He made his case for more minutes later in the night.

Lead by offence from VanVleet and Ibaka, the Raptors took a 60-56 lead into half-time. Nurse joked that VanVleet’s crankiness lately about wanting to play better was paying off in this game.

“He was grouchy again tonight at the start. But at least he made a couple of threes and then wasn’t as grouchy once he started scoring,” said Nurse. “He had a little bit of an attitude again tonight, he just has that sense of urgency and wants to play better, and I thought he finally got untracked a little bit tonight.”

The Raps built a 10-point lead going into the fourth quarter, and stretched it to as much as 15. The Kings hung around for a while before the Raps truly shut them down. The late minutes saw a burst of offence from Lowry, a thundering dunk from Boucher on his eight-point night and rare appearances from Jordan Loyd and Malachi Richardson. Miles would play to a 5-of-7 shooting night, 4-of-5 from three-point range.

“CJ’s been coming back around,” said Lowry. “That’s what a true professional is: You’ll go through slumps, you’re gonna miss shots, but you continue to work, continue to be a professional, and get your job done when the time comes. And Norm, you know, he’s just been consistently great since he’s come back from his injury.”

Marvin Bagley III led the way for Sacramento with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Bogdan Bogdanovic added 16 points with nine assists and eight boards.

The Raps improve to 36-13, while the Kings fall to 24-24.

That’s 10 straight home victories for the Raptors, a season-high streak. The franchise record for consecutive wins at home is 12.

Nurse was pleased to see Lowry looking more comfortable again.

“I think he looked a little bit more like himself here tonight,” said Nurse. “I was sitting there debating about leaving him in or not but I think that helps his rhythm and his confidence going into tomorrow night [in Indianapolis].”

The team now leaves on a three-game win streak, stopping in Indiana, Houston and Dallas. They return home on Jan. 31 to face their foe atop the Eastern Conference Standings, the Milwaukee Bucks.

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