CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Every now and again, Terence Davis reminds himself that 30 NBA teams passed on him in the 2019 draft.
Wednesday was one of those nights.
Davis made the most of his first NBA start with 23 points and 11 rebounds, Serge Ibaka made two free throws with 5.1 seconds left in overtime and also finished with 23 points and 11 rebounds, and the banged-up Toronto Raptors escaped with a 112-110 overtime win over the Charlotte Hornets.
Davis said going undrafted wasn’t ideal, but “it adds fuel to the fire.”
“I told my family when I didn’t get drafted, ‘Hey, those guys that got their name called still have to lace them up and go play in the Summer League,’” Davis said. “… So did I. That was my mindset going into the draft night was just to get to the Summer League.”
Davis said he was “surprised” when coach Raptors coach Nick Nurse told him before the game he was going to start.
The Raptors were without Fred VanVleet, Pascal Siakam, Marc Gasol, Dewan Hernandez and Norman Powell due to injuries, leaving them depleted on the second night of a back-to-back.
“He was really good,” Nurse said of Davis. “This isn’t that easy to figure out who to play with all these guys out constantly and trying to figure out some ways to keep guys ticking. When they are really fighting hard for minutes they play better. …. There are all kinds of things going on, but with me I am going to rattle your cage if you deserve to have it rattled.”
Davis picked up the slack for the Raptors, getting into a rhythm early with 13 points in the first quarter. The rookie from Mississippi also finished strong with two big 3-pointers in overtime.
“I was being aggressive without trying to force things,” said Davis, a second-team All-Southeastern Conference selection last season. “Guys were finding me and I knocked a couple shots down and got to the paint.”
OG Anunoby added 19 points and Kyle Lowry had 15 points and nine assists while having to play 43 minutes due to injuries in the backcourt. Patrick McCaw added 13 points and 11 assists as the Raptors bounced back from a home loss to Portland on Tuesday night.
Terry Rozier led the Hornets with 27 points, but his 3-pointer at the buzzer in overtime that would have won the game fell just short.
Rozier exchanged words and pointed fingers at Davis on the court after the game and the two had to be separated by teammates before heading back to their respective locker rooms. Both players declined to discuss what was said after the game.
Miles Bridges added 26 points and nine rebounds for Charlotte, and P.J. Washington had 12 points and 12 rebounds.
This was a much different game than on Nov. 18 when Toronto defeated Charlotte 132-96 at home.
After leading by as many as 12 in the third quarter, the Raptors fell behind by 10 in the fourth quarter when Rozier hit a long 3 from the left wing with 5:25 remaining.
But the Raptors battled back to take the lead 100-99 with 17 seconds left when Lowry drove the lane and scored on a left-handed layup in traffic. On the Hornets’ ensuing inbounds pass, Ibaka was called for a foul away from the ball after grabbing Washington’s jersey. Rozier sank the automatic free throw to tie it, but Devonte Graham’s runner at the buzzer was short, sending the game into overtime.
Ibaka scored the game’s go-ahead points after grabbing an offensive rebound and drawing a foul on Rozier. Hornets coach James Borrego said he thought Ibaka might have travelled on the play, but added he would have to watch the film to be sure.
“You have to keep playing for 48 minutes and that’s the bottom line,” Borrego said. “No matter if you’re up or down, you have to keep playing.”
TIP INS
Raptors: Had 34 assisted baskets. … Davis was 8 of 16 from the field in his first start.
Hornets: Bench outscored Raptors’ reserves 28-19 despite only playing eight players overall.
ROZIER STAYS HOT
Rozier has scored at least 27 points in four straight games for the Hornets. He started slow against the Raptors, but picked up the pace in the second half and in overtime, where he made a series of big plays, including a steal and an assist for Devonte Graham for a transition 3-pointer.
“I think he came back with a vengeance,” Borrego said. “He was terrific down the stretch. He had great will, just to chase down that transition possession for them was fantastic. He kept attacking the rim. He got to the rim. I liked the ball in his hands late.”
BACK-TO-BACK PROWESS
The Raptors have not lost on back-to-back nights since Dec. 26-27, 2017.
Lowry attributed that to the team’s resiliency.
“We played hard and Coach Nurse has a good mentality,” Lowry said. “We have a lot of guys hurt right now and we got some guys coming back and we will just keep plugging away.”
BRIDGES OVER TROUBLED WATERS
Bridges knocked down a career-high six 3-pointers. “I wasn’t hesitating on the shots and the last few games I was hesitating,” Bridges said. “I was just shooting them.”
UP NEXT:
Raptors: Get a three-day rest before hosting the Spurs on Sunday.
Hornets: Head west to face the Jazz in Utah on Friday night.
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CLEVELAND (AP) — Restricted free agent forward Isaac Okoro has agreed to re-sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers on a three-year contract, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press on Saturday.
Okoro’s new deal is worth $38 million, according to the person who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the contract has not been signed or announced by the team.
ESPN.com first reported the agreement, citing Okoro’s representation.
The fifth overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft, Okoro is Cleveland’s best perimeter defender, often drawing the assignment of guarding the opponent’s top scorer. Okoro also has worked to improve his offensive game.
The 23-year-old averaged 9.4 points and 3.0 rebounds in 69 games — 42 starts — last season for the Cavs, who beat Orlando in the opening round of the playoffs before losing to eventual champion Boston.
Okoro shot a career-best 39% on 3-pointers, forcing teams to come out and guard him.
His agreement caps an extraordinarily busy summer for the Cavs that began with coach J.B. Bickerstaff being fired and replaced by Kenny Atkinson. All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell signed a three-year, $150 million extension in July, ending months of speculation that he wanted out of Cleveland.
Also, power forward Evan Mobley signed a five-year, $224 deal and center Jarrett Allen signed a three-year, $91 million extension.
GUADALAJARA, Mexico – Canada’s Marina Stakusic fell 6-4, 6-3 to Poland’s Magdalena Frech in the quarterfinals of the Guadalajara Open tennis tournament on Friday.
The 19-year-old from Mississauga, Ont., won 61 per cent of her first-serve points and broke on just one of her six opportunities.
Stakusic had upset top-seeded Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (0) on Thursday night to advance.
In the opening round, Stakusic defeated Slovakia’s Anna Karolína Schmiedlová 6-2, 6-4 on Tuesday.
The fifth-seeded Frech won 62 per cent of her first-serve points and converted on three of her nine break point opportunities.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
TORONTO – Alejandro Kirk’s long single with the bases loaded provided the Toronto Blue Jays with a walk-off 4-3 win in the 11th inning of their series opener against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday.
With the Cardinals outfield in, Kirk drove a shot off the base of the left-field wall to give the Blue Jays (70-78) their fourth win in 11 outings and halt the Cardinals’ (74-73) two-game win streak before 30,380 at Rogers Centre.
Kirk enjoyed a two-hit, two-RBI outing.
Erik Swanson (2-2) pitched a perfect 11th inning for the win, while Cardinals reliever Ryan Fernandez (1-5) took the loss.
Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman enjoyed a seven-inning, 104-pitch outing. He surrendered his two runs on nine hits and two walks and fanned only two Cardinals.
He gave way to reliever Genesis Cabrera, who gave up a one-out homer to Thomas Saggese, his first in 2024, that tied the game in the eighth.
The Cardinals started swiftly with four straight singles to open the game. But they exited the first inning with only two runs on an RBI single to centre from Nolan Arendao and a fielder’s choice from Saggese.
Gausman required 28 pitches to escape the first inning but settled down to allow his teammates to snatch the lead in the fourth.
He also deftly pitched out of threats from the visitors in the fifth, sixth and seventh thanks to some solid defence, including Will Wagner’s diving stop, which led to a double play to end the fifth inning.
George Springer led off with a walk and stole second base. He advanced to third on Nathan Lukes’s single and scored when Vladimir Guerrero Jr. knocked in his 95th run with a double off the left-field wall.
Lukes scored on a sacrifice fly to left field from Spencer Horwitz. Guerrero touched home on Kirk’s two-out single to right.
In the ninth, Guerrero made a critical diving catch on an Arenado grounder to throw out the Cardinals’ infielder, with reliever Tommy Nance covering first. The defensive gem ended the inning with a runner on second base.
St. Louis starter Erick Fedde faced the minimum night batters in the first three innings thanks to a pair of double plays. He lasted five innings, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk with three strikeouts.
ON DECK
Toronto ace Jose Berrios (15-9) will start the second of the three-game series on Saturday. He has a six-game win streak.
The Cardinals will counter with righty Kyle Gibson (8-6).
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
