Regina man witnesses history in Toronto as Raptors punch first ticket to NBA final
Tyson Liske says he has never been a big basketball fan — until now.
Liske was one of almost 20,500 people in Toronto's Scotiabank Arena who witnessed the Raptors punch their first ticket ever to the NBA finals after defeating the Milwaukee Bucks 100-94.
"It was absolutely amazing," the Regina man said from Toronto. "The arena was absolutely electric. The vibe in there was just off the charts."
Liske was visiting Toronto for work and happened to be in town for Saturday's game six of the NBA Eastern Conference final.
"It was such a once in a lifetime opportunity, really," he said.
"The lineup getting into the arena went for blocks and blocks and blocks, thousands of people making their way to probably, I think, the hottest spot in absolutely all of North America."
The game didn't get off to the start Raptors fans were hoping for, though. At one point the Raptors were down by 15 points.
But Liske said that didn't seem to deter the players or crowd.
"I've never been in a louder arena in my life. Everyone still clung to that hope that they would be able to do something absolutely historical in that situation," he said with excitement in his voice, still buzzing from the night before.
The crowd's hopes became a reality as the Raptors clawed back in the fourth quarter, taking a 100-94 lead with 3.9 seconds to go. As the final seconds ran down, Canada's largest city erupted as history was made.
"The crowd went wild," he said.
"People are hugging, high five-ing, the city came together at that point and everybody just stayed in the arena for so long ... It was just an unforgettable experience of the city celebrating together, really a nation celebrating together."
He said celebrations could be heard on the streets well into the early morning hours.
Liske said after witnessing Saturday's game he'll be a Raptors fan for life.
"It's pretty surreal right now," he said.
"It's such a special feeling knowing that I can look back someday and say I was there the first time the Raptors went to go to the NBA finals."
The Raptors are set to meet the Golden State Warriors in the NBA final. The Western Conference champs are led by two of the league's best players — Steph Curry and Kevin Durant.
But history is on Toronto's side as the Raptors swept Golden State in the regular season.
The series gets underway Thursday night in Toronto.
