Roko Leni Ukić scored 22 points on 9-13 shooting  in 30 minutes off the bench, all career highs, in Toronto’s unlikely 91-89 win over the San Antonio Spurs.

And to make Ukic’s career night even sweeter for the Croatian rookie, his point total included hitting a couple clutch shots against not only one of the NBA’s better teams, but against an internatioal superstar point guard in Tony Parker.

Ukic was filling in for Spanish point guard Jose Calderon, whom sat out the game with a sore right hamstring, giving the 22-year old a chance to shine.

And shine he did;  Ukic would hit a clutch three pointer to bring his team within one with 50 seconds remaining.  Then on the ensuing possession, Ukic would drive into the lane and score a runner over Tony Parker and Tim Duncan, with just 20 seconds in the game to put Toronto up for good.

Parker would miss a game-tying mid-range jumper at the buzzer.

The rookie’s career-game help to offset Manu Ginobili’s season high 32 points. The Argentine superstar, whom is one of the NBA’s best performers in the fourth quarter, nearly willed the Spurs to the win, attacking the basket possession after possession, and scoring 15 points in the fourth quarter.

But it was all about Ukic as reporters swarmed Roko’s locker, the rookie couldn’t get away from his teammate’s giving him a hard time after the game.   “Roko, tell them you live for it!“ Jamario Moon hollered.

“He’s a confident kid. He’s been playing pro since he was 6 years old. He’s been collecting a check for 20 years now. His experience is vast.” said teammate Jason Kapono, sarcastically referring to the 24-year old Ukic’s eight-years of professional experience overseas.

When Roko finally got the chance to speak his mind, he gave more insight as to why he was able to thrive, “I really like those situations when I have got the ball on top [of the key], and I just need to score,” Ukic said. “I feel pretty comfortable in that situation much more than, for example, shooting the free throws in the end or something like that. I really like live play and trying to make something happen. I didn’t feel much pressure. I just took him to the basket because I saw nobody was helping and the lane was pretty much open.”

Roko’s 22 points matched Tony Parker’s 22 points on the Spurs side, and definitely earned some respect last night.

Raptor’s star Chris Bosh also missed the game leaving only 9 players for the game;  Joey Graham scored 24 points and Italy’s Andrea Bargnani contributed 23 points to Toronto’s victory. (Article written by Matt Blair with contributions from Stuart Leung)

Links and Resources: Toronto’s no-stars get job done (National Post), Toronto defeats San Antonio 91-89 Boxscore (Yahoo Sports), Roko Ukic Thinks NBA Players Don’t Respect White Point Guards (AOL Fanhouse), Raptors earn quality win over Spurs (Canada.com), Raptors guard Calderon out with sore hamstring (NBa.com)