Hornets 95, Knicks 93
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Forward Cody Zeller hit a layup off an inbounds pass with 0.4 seconds remaining, and the Charlotte Hornets then held on in a bizarre finish for a 95-93 victory over the New York Knicks on Wednesday night.
New York rookie forward Kristaps Porzingis hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer that initially was ruled good, but the basket was disallowed after officials determined that the clock already expired.
Zeller's layup came after the Hornets inbounded under the New York basket with 2.2 seconds left. Center Spencer Hawks found Zeller going back door and delivered a perfect pass.
Zeller missed two free throws with 28.5 seconds remaining that could have given the Hornets the lead, and then New York forward Carmelo Anthony badly missed a rushed 20-footer with 3.7 seconds remaining.
The win moved the Hornets (4-4) to the .500 mark for the first time this year. They have won four of their past five after an 0-3 start.
The Knicks (4-5) were looking for a third consecutive win.
Guard Nic Batum led the Hornets with a season-high 24 points. Guard Jeremy Lin scored 17, guard Jeremy Lamb had 14, and Zeller finished with 12.
Anthony led the Knicks with 29 points, including 15 in the third quarter. Guard Jose Calderon scored 13, guard Arron Afflalo 12, and Porzingis finished with 10 points and 15 rebounds.
The Hornets won despite shooting just 41.7 percent from the field and going 17 of 28 from the free-throw line. They were helped by 17 New York turnovers. Charlotte gave the ball away just five times.
The Knicks led 27-18 after one quarter and were up by 12 early in the second before the Hornets fought back to take a 49-47 halftime lead. New York then led by 12 again in the third and took a 79-69 lead into the fourth quarter.
The Hornets went on an 8-0 run early in the fourth, and the game was tied four times down the stretch from there.
NOTES: Knicks G Arron Afflalo was back after missing the first eight games of the season with a strained hamstring. Afflalo replaced G Sasha Vujacic in the starting lineup. ... Both teams were playing the second night of back-to-backs. The Knicks won 111-109 in Toronto on Tuesday night and the Hornets won 104-95 at Minnesota. ... Hornets F P.J. Hairston returned after playing only seven minutes at Minnesota because of migraine headaches. ... Knicks associate head coach Kurt Rambis was an original Hornet. Charlotte associate head coach Patrick Ewing is the Knicks' career leader in 11 statistical categories, including games played. ... This was the only home game in a five-game stretch for the Hornets. They hit the road again for a game on Friday in Chicago. The Knicks return home to host Cleveland on Friday night.