By Matt Rochinski, hornets.com
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Result
With their season on the line, the Charlotte Hornets bounced back from a rough loss one night earlier to shock the Raptors, 110-106, on Wednesday, March 29 in Toronto, ON. The Hornets trailed by eight entering the fourth, but pulled off the comeback victory thanks largely to a 44-point eruption in the final 12 minutes, tying their largest scoring output in any quarter this season. The Hornets have now won five of their last seven games and currently sit in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, three games back of the final playoff spot.
Turning Point
With the score tied 101-101 and just 37.5 seconds remaining in the game, Kemba Walker knocked down a huge three-pointer from the top of the arc to put the Hornets up by three. DeMar DeRozan then hit a pair of free throws to cut the deficit back down to one, but Marvin Williams responded with another three-pointer from nearly the exact same spot as Walker’s to put Charlotte back up, 107-103, with just 08.7 seconds to go. Serge Ibaka missed a three-point attempt on the other end and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist drained a couple of free throws for the Hornets to seal the win.
Hornets Player of the Game
Kemba Walker racked up 19 points (11 in the fourth quarter), four rebounds and two assists for Charlotte in the victory. The sixth-year veteran is now just one point shy of becoming the second player in franchise history to reach 8,000 for his career (Dell Curry - 9,839 points).
Raptors Player of the Game
DeMar DeRozan totaled a game-high 28 points on 11-of-24 shooting, six rebounds and a game-high eight assists in the loss. The eight assists are tied for the second-highest single-game total of the season for DeRozan.
Game Notes
Marco Belinelli tallied team-high totals in scoring (21 points; 11 in the fourth quarter) and assists (five) in 27 minutes off the bench… Marvin Williams recorded his career-high-tying 10th double-double of the season (seventh in March), finishing with 18 points and a team-high 12 rebounds… Nicolas Batum added 15 points, four rebounds and three assists… Frank Kaminsky tossed in 13 points, four rebounds and two assists in 20 minutes off the bench… Miles Plumlee returned from a 19-game absence, chipping in five points and a game-high-tying two steals in 15 minutes off the bench… Charlotte connected on 16-of-32 three-point attempts (50.0 percent), which included an 8-of-10 mark in the fourth quarter (80.0 percent)… The Hornets topped the Raptors in second-chance points (22-10) and bench scoring (52-28).
Quote of the Night
“Coach [Pat] Riley always said ‘most nights, it’s a make-or-miss league.’ We made eight threes in the fourth, got a couple stops when we needed it. At the end of the day, we got some open threes and knocked them in.” – Hornets Head Coach Steve Clifford
Quote of the Night
“Coach [Pat] Riley always said ‘most nights, it’s a make-or-miss league.’ We made eight threes in the fourth, got a couple stops when we needed it. At the end of the day, we got some open threes and knocked them in.” – Hornets Head Coach Steve Clifford
Next Up
The Hornets return home to take on the Denver Nuggets starting at 7 p.m. on Friday, March 31 in Charlotte. The game can be seen on FOX Sports Southeast or heard on WFNZ or on the official Charlotte Hornets mobile app.
next up
Friday, Mar 31 - 7:00 pmSpectrum Center, Charlotte, NC
Fox Sports Southeast - Charlotte Hornets App & WFNZ 610 AM