Raptors-Bobcats Preview

By MATT BEARDMORE
Posted Nov 20 2012 11:36PM

With four victories in their last five games, the Charlotte Bobcats have nearly matched their win total from 2011-12.

They can already surpass last season's home win total on Wednesday night when the struggling Toronto Raptors try to avoid a fourth consecutive road loss in this series.

Since opening 1-3, the Bobcats have lost just once, 94-87 to Memphis on Saturday when they opened a four-game homestand.

Charlotte (5-4) surely wasn't expected to challenge for a playoff spot after finishing 7-59 last season and with the worst winning percentage at league history at .106, but there's no telling how successful rookie coach Mike Dunlap's team can be if it continues to play stout defense and win close games.

After ranking 27th last season with 100.9 points allowed per game, the Bobcats are holding teams to 99.0. They've limited their last five opponents to 98 or fewer - the team's longest such stretch since an eight-game run Oct. 30-Nov. 13, 2010 - after rallying from 11 down in the fourth quarter of Monday's 102-98 victory over Milwaukee.

The Bobcats improved to 4-2 at home and 4-0 in games decided by four or fewer points.

"They compete every night and they're not going to roll over," said Bucks swingman Mike Dunleavy. "When you do that in this league you're going to win more than seven games. They're going to blow that mark away this year obviously. They're headed in the right direction."

With a victory on Wednesday, the Bobcats will move past last season's home win total. Charlotte lost its last 14 there in 2011-12 following a 107-103 victory over the Raptors on March 17.

Exactly one month earlier, the Bobcats snapped a 16-game skid with a 98-91 victory at Toronto.

The Raptors (3-8) arrive in Charlotte following Tuesday's 106-98 loss at Philadelphia. Point guard Kyle Lowry had 13 points, seven rebounds, seven assists off the bench after missing six games with a foot injury, but Toronto was outscored 33-18 in the fourth quarter to fall to 1-5 on the road.

"We had control of the game and we've got to make basketball plays," said coach Dwane Casey, whose team is off to its worst 11-game start since opening 2-9 two years ago.

The Raptors have to get better on the defensive end. They're yielding 100.4 points per game - 101.5 on the road - and opponents are shooting 40.0 percent from 3-point range after the 76ers hit 9 in 24 attempts.

Bobcats guards Kemba Walker and Ramon Sessions haven't been a big threat from beyond the arc, hitting a combined 9 for 44, but they're averaging 20.2 and 17.2 points, respectively, during the 4-1 run.

Rookie Michael Kidd-Gilchrist is scoring 13.8 points per game with 7.8 rebounds during this stretch, while Byron Mullens is adding 13.0 points and a team-best 10.6 boards per game.

DeMar DeRozan and Andrea Bargnani totaled 46 points on Tuesday when the Raptors opened a stretch of 10 of 12 on the road. The two combined for 50 points in a 92-87 home win April 3 that ended a six-game slide in this series.

All of Toronto's victories have come on the second night of back-to-backs. The Raptors dropped 16 of 20 such games last season.

Sessions lifts Bobcats past Raptors 98-97

By STEVE REED
Posted Nov 22 2012 1:33AM

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) Ramon Sessions hit a 16-footer with 28 seconds left and the Charlotte Bobcats made a late defensive stand to beat the Toronto Raptors 98-97 Wednesday night for their fifth win in six games.

The Bobcats led by as many as 10 in the fourth quarter, but the Raptors took the lead after a late run.

Sessions made a jumper from just beyond the foul line that hit the rim twice before falling through to give the Bobcats the lead. Toronto had four shots to win it, but two resulted in blocks and Andrea Bargnani's baseline jumper fell short as time expired.

Kemba Walker had 19 points and seven assists for the Bobcats, while Sessions and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist each had 14 points.

Bargnani had 25 points and Kyle Lowry added 21 for the Raptors. Jonas Valanciunas added 16 points and 10 rebounds.

The Bobcats improved to 5-0 in games decided by four points or fewer.

The Bobcats (6-4) are one win away from equaling last year's season win total. They were 7-59 last season.

Walker and Sessions continue to be an impressive tandem for the Bobcats as both have scored in double digits all 10 games this season.

The Bobcats got some quality minutes from second-year power forward Bismack Biyombo, who's not typically known for his offensive prowess.

Biyombo had six of his 11 points in the third quarter, including a powerful dunk over Bargnani after battling for control of an offensive rebound. He also had a key block on Toronto's final possession.

Biyombo was 5 of 6 from the field and had five rebounds and was on the floor at the end of the game ahead of Byron Mullens because he was playing so well.

The Bobcats led by as many as 10 early in the fourth quarter before Jose Calderon hit a 3-pointer, DeMar DeRozan scored on a layup and jumper and Bargnani hit a jumper from the top of the key to tie the game at 88 with 4:50 to play. Bargnani then knocked down a 3-pointer to give Toronto the lead with 1:52 to play.

But the Bobcats kept battling with Walker driving the left side of the line and scoring and drawing a sixth foul on Valanciunas. Walker finished the 3-point play to tie the game with game with 55 seconds left.

DeRozan hit one of two free throws at the other end before Sessions got a foul line jumper to drop after hitting the rim three times giving Charlotte the 98-97 lead with 28.3 seconds left.

Toronto missed three shots at the other end and two of those were blocked.

The Raptors set up an inbounds play for Lowry with 6.4 seconds left and he got off a 12-footer that was blocked by rookie Jeffery Taylor.

Valanciunas had another shot as time expired but couldn't knock it down and the Bobcats held after a furious defensive stand.

The score was tied at halftime following a back-and-forth first half.

Lowry had 16 points at the break after hitting all three 3-point attempts for the Raptors, while Walker had 10 points for the Bobcats.

The Raptors were coming off a 106-98 loss at Philadelphia and Bobcats coach Mike Dunlap said before the game the goal was to pressure Toronto as much as possible and try to wear them down.

Notebook: Bobcats 98, Raptors 97

Derek S. Smith, for NBA.com
Posted Wed Nov 21, 2012 11:03 PM - Updated Wed Nov 21, 2012 11:03 PM

THE FACTS: Kemba Walker scored 19 points to lead seven Charlotte Bobcats in double figures in a 98-97 come-from-behind win over the Toronto Raptors Wednesday night at Time Warner Cable Arena. Andrea Bargnani led all scorers with 25 points while Kyle Lowry scored 21 in his return to the starting lineup for the Raptors.

QUOTABLE: We are young. There's exuberance and an excitement about the game of basketball. We're learning as we play each game. The winning is giving us a lot of plusses. A lot of intangibles. We won ugly tonight and it doesn't really matter. The better part will come, but we're finding a way. -- Charlotte Bobcats coach Mike Dunlap.

THE STAT: Trailing 98-97, Toronto had a total of five missed shots in the final 28.3 seconds of play including a Bargnani miss at the buzzer, but was unable to get any of them to fall.

TURNING POINT: Bobcats second-year forward Bismack Biyombo scored on back-to-back possessions late in the third quarter to keep Charlotte in the game. The points along with his energy and enthusiasm gave confidence to the coaching staff which later made the rare move to insert Biyombo for defensive purposes in the game's waning moments. The decision to go with that small lineup late made the difference and gave the Bobcats the win.

HOT: Bargnani scored a season-high 25 points in the loss to Charlotte on 9-of-17 shooting. He was 2-of-3 from the three-point line and was a perfect five-of-five from the free throw line. Bargnani is averaging 21.3 points over the last three games while shooting 45.6 percent from the floor.

NOT: Although the team is 4-1 in its last five games, the Bobcats have struggled mightily from behind the three-point line. Charlotte was 3-of-19 (15.8 percent) in Wednesday's victory and have connected on just 17-of-72 (23.6 percent) in the last five contests. The Bobcats are currently last in the league in three-point shooting.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Lowry returned to the starting lineup Wednesday night and left off right where fantasy owners had hoped. Lowry had 21 points, three rebounds and eight assists against Charlotte. Lowry connected on 6-of-15 shots from the floor and was 4-of-7 from behind the arc while sinking five of his seven free throw attempts. Lowry struggled with his shooting Tuesday in Philadelphia, but responded well in his 36 minutes of action Wednesday. It was Lowry's fourth 20-point game of the season.

GOOD MOVE: Charlotte coach Mike Dunlap has shown great faith in second-round draft pick Jeffrey Taylor. Taylor drew the defensive assignment of DeMar DeRozan and frustrated the Raptors leading scorer all game. DeRozan finished with 14 points on 6-of-13 shooting, but had just six points heading into the final stretch of the game.

ROOKIE WATCH: Jonas Valanciunas notched his second straight double-double and third of the season with his 16-point, 10-rebound performance. Both Valanciunas and Terrence Ross had rim-rocking dunks and Ross tallied a career-high 11 points. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist was one of seven Bobcats in double figures and finished with 14 points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals. Taylor finished the game with a career-highs in points (11), rebounds (6) and assists (2).

NOTABLE: Walker and Ramon Sessions have both scored in double figures in each of Charlotte's first 10 games. Ben Gordon was a game-time decision according to coach Dunlap with a bruised knee, but finished the game with 13 points and four assists. The Bobcats stand at 6-4 and have tied the franchise mark for best record through 10 games to start the season. Those six wins are just one shy of its total from all of last season. The team didn't earn its sixth win last year until its 40th game. The Bobcats picked up their fourth home win as well which equals their total from last season. Charlotte is now 5-0 in games decided by four points or less. Jose Calderon had averaged 12.8 assists in the previous six games with Lowry out of the lineup, but tallied just four assists Wednesday. Dominic McGuire recorded season highs of eight rebounds and five assists.

UP NEXT: For the Raptors, Friday @ Detroit, Sunday vs. San Antonio, Tuesday @ Houston. For the Bobcats, Friday vs. Atlanta, Saturday @ Washington, Monday @ Oklahoma City.

• Raptors: Anderson, Fields
• Bobcats: Henderson, Thomas

• Raptors: DeRozan
• Bobcats: Taylor, Walker

• Lead Changes: 13
• Times Tied: 10

• Arena: Time Warner Cable Arena, Charlotte, NC
• Officials: #12 Violet Palmer, #14 Ed Malloy, #30 John Goble
• Attendance: 15240
• Duration: 2:21