Another big finish by Graham carries Hornets past Wizards

Devonte' Graham had another big second half on his way to scoring 29 points and the Charlotte Hornets made key conversions on offense down the stretch to pull out a 114-107 victory against the visiting Washington Wizards on Tuesday night. The Hornets finished a five-game homestand with a 2-3 record.

Despite Charlotte's recent defensive problems, the Hornets held the Wizards below their season scoring average of 118.2 entering the game. As for Graham, he scored 22 second-half points for the second time in three games and at scored in double digits in the second half for the fourth time in five games.

Graham's three-point play with 1:34 left sent the Hornets to a 108-104 edge. After a Terry Rozier free throw, Wizards reserve Davis Bertans made his eighth 3-pointer of the game with 31.4 seconds to play to make it 109-107. But Miles Bridges drained a 3-pointer from the corner for Charlotte with the shot clock winding down and only about 8 seconds left to ensure the win.

Rozier had 17 points for the Hornets and Bridges finished with 16. P.J. Washington, despite coming off an ankle injury sustained Sunday, had 15 points, Cody Zeller had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Bismack Biyombo provided 13 points and 15 rebounds. Bertans poured in 32 points on 8-for-12 shooting on 3-pointers, while the rest of the Wizards were a combined 3-for-23 on 3s.

Rui Hachimura had 18 points and 12 rebounds for Washington, which lost its fourth straight road game. Bradley Beal added 16 and Ish Smith chipped in 13. The Wizards scored the first nine points of the fourth quarter to go up 84-82. From there, the teams were rarely separated by more than a basket.

The Hornets had a solid finish to the first half for a 53-48 lead at the break. The Wizards shot just 3-for-13 on first-half 3-pointers. There was a huge swing in the first half, as well.

Charlotte broke out to a 28-13 lead, but then went into a serious scoring drought, with three points in the first six-plus minutes of the second quarter. Combined with the end of the first quarter, the Hornets went eight minutes with only Graham's 3-point basket and the Wizards went from a 28-13 hole to a 35-31 lead. Charlotte forward Marvin Williams sat out with a sore right knee.

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