Hornets Drop 5th Consecutive Game in Loss to Raptors

The Charlotte Hornets were defeated by the Toronto Raptors, 116-101, on Monday. It was their fifth-straight loss.

Led by the trio of Pascal Siakam, Gary Trent Jr. and Fred VanVleet, the Raptors got off to a fast start. After a basket by the Hornets Miles Bridges, Siakam finished a putback to get the Raptors on the board. Newly named All-Star LaMelo Ball banked in a reverse layup for his first points. Scottie Barnes found himself in early foul trouble, with two, in the first three minutes of the contest for the Raptors.

Terry Rozier’s mid-range jump shot knotted the game at 7, off the ensuing rebound. Gordon Hayward suffered a left ankle sprain and did not return to the game, with the Hornets down by six, 21-15. The Raptors got wide opened looks from beyond the arc and Siakam drove into the lane at will. At the end of the first period, the Raptors led 35-21.

Toronto continued their extended run into the second quarter. The Hornets dug themselves into a 21 point hole, 44-23, with mistake-filled basketball. Even though the Hornets ball movement got better, they could not throw the ball into the ocean, especially from three-point range (2-16 in the first half).

“We just have to start finding that rhythm offensively,” Hornets coach James Borrego said. “The 3-ball has dried up obviously, but that is okay. It will come back to us. Until then we have to find our offense through our defense.”

PJ Washington had a spectacular assist to Kelly Oubre Jr. and the Hornets finished the quarter on a 12-4 run. Toronto still led by 15, 56-41 at halftime. It was the Raptors second-largest halftime lead on the road this season.

The Hornets started the second half on a 9-1 run, capped off by Ball catching a lob from Rozier to trim the deficit to seven, 57-50. Toronto continued to convert their uncontested jump shots and their lead swelled to 14. Rozier took over in the latter stages of the third, scoring 13 points and brought the Hornets within three point, but the Hornets ran out of steam as their sub-par three point shooting reared its ugly head. Heading into the final stanza, Toronto led 80-75.

At the start of the fourth quarter, both Rozier and Washington missed open threes. The Raptors outscored the Hornets 9-3 in the first four minutes of the quarter to stretch their lead to double digits. VanVleet hit a deep three, making the score 92-80, with just under seven minutes to play.

In a move of desperation, Hornets coach James Borrego went to a zone defense, but the outcome of that move only resulted in more open looks from downtown for the Raptors. The Raptors kept the Hornets at bay for the remainder of the game, going on to win, 116-101.

Siakam had 24 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists, a near triple-double for the Raptors. Trent scored 24 points, had three rebounds and two assists. VanVleet and OG Anunoby each had 20 points. Barnes added 15 points, eight rebounds and three assists. The Raptors starters scored 103 of their 116 points.

Bridges had a game-high 25 points for the Hornets. He also contributed six rebounds and five assists. Rozier finished with 20 points, five rebounds and six Assists. Oubre had 17 points, six rebounds and two assists off the bench. Washington scored 15 points, had nine rebounds and two assists. Ball also scored 15 points, with four rebounds and nine assists.

The Raptors travel to Oklahoma to face Josh Giddy and the Thunder Wednesday. The Hornets host DeMar DeRozan and the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday.