NBA: Immanuel Quickley beats buzzer, Raptors down Hornets

Immanuel Quickley’s 3-point shot at the buzzer propelled the visiting Toronto Raptors to a thrilling 97-96 victory against the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday night.

Quickley’s shot, released just left of the top of the 3-point arc, sealed the game after a tense back-and-forth sequence in the final moments.

RJ Barrett led Toronto with 28 points, while Quickley added 21. Scottie Barnes contributed 17 points, 15 of which came in the first half.

LaMelo Ball’s late drive gave the Hornets the lead with 1.6 seconds remaining. Both teams called timeouts before the Raptors inbounded the ball for the final shot. The game-winning basket marked Toronto’s seventh successful 3-pointer out of 34 attempts, with Quickley making 3 of 11 from long range.

Collin Sexton led Charlotte off the bench with 22 points as the Hornets looked to build momentum following their upset of NBA-best Oklahoma City on Monday. Ball scored 15 points, Miles Bridges had 12, and Kon Knueppel added 11 points on 4-for-17 shooting. Charlotte shot 39% from the field overall.

The Raptors avenged two earlier losses to the Hornets. Toronto’s Collin Murray-Boyles pulled down 15 rebounds, though Charlotte held a 50-42 advantage on the boards.

In the closing moments, Sexton’s 3-pointer gave the Hornets a 92-89 lead. Barrett’s three-point play with 56.4 seconds left tied the game at 92-92. After Bridges sank two free throws, Barrett hit a short jumper with 20 seconds remaining before Ball regained the lead for Charlotte.

Quickley and Barrett both scored five consecutive points in the fourth quarter, helping Toronto overcome a 10-point deficit to take an 82-81 lead. Barrett later added back-to-back baskets to push the Raptors ahead 86-83 with about five minutes left.

Charlotte led 50-45 at halftime, fueled by 10-of-21 shooting from beyond the arc. Toronto struggled in the first half, making just 2 of 19 three-point attempts, but rallied to erase a 13-point deficit.

The Hornets survived 12 first-half turnovers and finished the game with 18 giveaways. They had opened the second quarter with a 16-5 run to take a 38-30 lead.

—Field Level Media/Reuters