103
95
With Al Jefferson, Lance Stephenson, and Cody Zeller not in last night's lineup, the Charlotte Hornets wanted to call on some reinforcements to stay the course after Wednesday night's win at home over the New Orleans Pelicans, and one of those major reinforcements was Gerald Henderson, who helped carry the load for the Hornets en route to its fourth straight win by defeating the Toronto Raptors 103-95 at the Air Canada Center. The Hornets are now 14-24 on the season, while Toronto dropped it's 4th straight and find themselves at 24-11 on the year.
Another key player that played a part in Charlotte's win last night was Kemba Walker, and that would deserve some praise from head coach Steve Clifford. "We're asking a lot of him. He's young, competitive, and likes to play big minutes." said Clifford of Walker, who was just one point shy of joining former Hornet Glen Rice as the only players in the history of Charlotte NBA Basketball(dating back to 1988-89) to have four-straight 30 point games(Rice accomplished the feat in the 1996-97 season). "I'm just taking the opportunities that the defense gives me." said Walker, who finished with 29 points on 12-of-25 shooting from the field. "When I see my opportunity, I'm just making the play."
Henderson led the way with 31 points on 13-of-20 shooting from the field for Charlotte, while Marvin Williams, who started in place of Cody Zeller, had a good outing with 13 points and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had 10 points to go with 12 rebounds for another double-double in the win for the Hornets.
And for the Raptors, it was Kyle Lowry that led the way with 24 in the loss for the Raptors. Charlotte will be in action tomorrow afternoon, as they look for their 5th straight win by taking on the New York Knicks for a 1:00 p.m. start at Madison Square Garden, before they come back home to "The Hive" on Wednesday night to face the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs at 7:00.
Charlotte Hornets(13-24) vs. Toronto Raptors(24-10)
Air Canada Centre, Toronto, ON
Thursday, 7:30 p.m.
Television: SportSouth
Radio: WFNZ-AM(610 The Fan)
Series history(since 1995-96 season): CHA leads series 37-25 all-time
Tonight in Toronto, it will be a match-up of one team being on a winning streak, while the other is on a losing streak, as the Charlotte Hornets visit Toronto to face the Raptors for the first of four meetings this season. Charlotte won in dramatic fashion last night at "The Hive", courtesy of Kemba Walker's go ahead three-point play to give the Hornets a 98-94 win over the New Orleans Pelicans, while Toronto has lost three straight games, and are missing DeMar DeRozan in the process. Charlotte has won the last 4 meetings over the Raptors recently, and are looking for their 5th straight win over Toronto in the process.
Scouting the Hornets
Despite being shorthanded, the Charlotte Hornets would rally from behind last night on another clutch shot from Kemba Walker. This time around, it was a three-point play that would give the Hornets a thrilling 98-94 win over the New Orleans Pelicans at Time Warner Cable Arena for their third straight win. Tonight will be another tough challenge for the Hornets, as they square off against the Toronto Raptors "North of the Border" at the Air Canada Center, as Charlotte will begin a brief 2-game road trip.
Scouting the Raptors
The Raptors recent string on the road wasn't one they didn't expect, as they finished the trip with a dismal 2-4 mark, and they will be without the services of DeMar DeRozan, meaning that it will be up to Kyle Lowry and the rest of the Raptors to end their 3-game losing skid tonight at home, when they welcome in the Charlotte Hornets, who have won the last 3 games overall.
Next 4 games for the Hornets(Home games in Purple, Road games in Teal)
Saturday: Charlotte @ New York Knicks(1:00 p.m.)
Wednesday: San Antonio Spurs vs. Charlotte(7:00 p.m.)
Next Saturday: Indiana Pacers vs. Charlotte(7:00 p.m.)
January 19th: Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Charlotte(2:00 p.m.)
NOTES: All SportSouth telecasts begin with "Hornets Live" 30 minutes before tip-off; All Hornets games can be heard locally on flagship station WFNZ-AM(610 The Fan) and throughout the Carolinas on the Hornets Radio Network.
Today's installment of our "30 Teams in 30 Days" series of previewing all 30 NBA teams takes us "North of the Border" to Toronto, where we will take a look at a young, talented Raptors team that is looking forward to pick up where they left off last season.
Last season's record: 48-34(1st in Atlantic Division/3rd in Eastern Conference; Lost to BKN 4-3 in Eastern Conference First Round)
Head Coach: Dwane Casey(6th season, 158-194 overall; 4th season with TOR)
Arena: Air Canada Centre(19,800)
Website: Raptors.com
When Dwane Casey arrived in Toronto a couple of seasons back, he had the task of taking over a struggling team and to turn them into a competitive team in the Eastern Conference down the road, and last season was no exception for a Raptors team that many thought wasn't good enough to make it into the playoffs this season. Casey proved the critics wrong during his 3rd year in Toronto, guiding them to an Atlantic Division crown and locking down the third seed in the 2014 Eastern Conference playoffs thanks to a 48-34 mark.
The Raptors had a tough hill to climb in their first round match-up against the Brooklyn Nets, as Brooklyn would eventually knock out Toronto in the first round by winning the series 4-3, ending the Raptors surprising season.
The question that the Raptors are facing this season is: Can they pick up where they left off? It is in the hands of a up and coming roster with DeMar DeRozan, Landry Fields, and Kyle Lowry, and other key acquisitions that would eventually give the Raptors a chance to somewhat have a better year in the 2014-15 campaign, if they want to finish what last season's team started and to take it one step further this year in Toronto.
Upcoming team previews in the "30 Teams in 30 Days" series:
Thursday: Boston Celtics
Friday: New York Knicks
Saturday: Brooklyn Nets
Sunday: Philadelphia 76ers
Monday: Washington Wizards
Tuesday: Charlotte Hornets
