Ball has 31 points, Hornets rally to beat Pacers 123-122
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — LaMelo Ball scored 31 points, hitting seven 3-pointers, and the Charlotte Hornets used a 24-0 third period run to battle back and beat the Indiana Pacers 123-122 on Wednesday night in the opener for both teams.
Indiana led 122-121 on Torrey Craig’s foul shots with 12.7 left. P.J. Washington made two free throws with 4.6 seconds left before Domantas Sabonis missed from 11 feet to seal the Hornets’ victory.
Ball scored 12 points in the third-period run and finished with nine rebounds and seven assists. Gordon Hayward scored 27 points for Charlotte, which got 14 each from newcomers Kelly Oubre Jr. and Ish Smith.
Sabonis scored 33 points, Malcolm Brogdon had 28, and Chris Duarte chipped in with 27 for Indiana. The Pacers had a 21-point lead early in the second half.
BULLS 94, PISTONS 88
DETROIT (AP) — Zach LaVine scored 15 of his 34 points in the third quarter, leading the Chicago past Detroit.
Detroit’s Jerami Grant was off on an 11-foot baseline jumper with 50 seconds left, missing a chance to tie it. The Bulls sealed the victory by making free throws.
The Pistons were without rookie guard Cade Cunningham, the No. 1 overall pick, whose NBA debut was delayed by a sprained right ankle.
DeMar DeRozan had 17 points, and Lonzo Ball had 12 points in their Bulls debut. Nikola Vucevic had 10 points and 11 rebounds at halftime and finished with 15 points and 15 rebounds. Grant led the Pistons with 24 points.
WIZARDS 98, RAPTORS 83
TORONTO (AP) — Bradley Beal scored 23 points, Montrezl Harrell had 22 in his Wizards debut and Washington spoiled Toronto’s homecoming.
Kyle Kuzma — acquired with Harrell in the trade that sent Russell Westbrook to the Lakers — had 11 points and 14 rebounds for Washington. Spencer Dinwiddie, acquired from the Nets in the same four-team deal, scored 13 points for the Wizards, who led by as many as 29 points to give new coach Wes Unseld Jr. a victory in his first game.
Fred VanVleet scored 12 points and rookie Scottie Barnes had 12 in his debut, but it was a disappointing performance for the Raptors, who played in Toronto for the first time since a Feb. 28, 2020, loss to Charlotte. Toronto relocated to Tampa last season because of border restrictions stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.
