NBA: Kelly Olynyk hits OT buzzer-beater, Pistons sink skidding Hornets
Kelly Olynyk #13 of the Detroit Pistons shoots the ball against the Charlotte Hornets during the fourth quarter at Little Caesars Arena on February 11, 2022 in Detroit, Michigan. Nic Antaya/Getty Images
Kelly Olynyk’s 14-foot jumper at the buzzer gave the Detroit Pistons a 127-126 overtime victory against the host Charlotte Hornets on Sunday night.
Saddiq Bey’s 28 points and Jerami Grant’s 26 points led the Pistons, while Olynyk ended up with 20 points and eight rebounds.
Article continues after this advertisementAfter Grant’s basket cut the gap to 126-125 with 1:29 left, neither team scored until Olynyk took the game’s last shot. Cade Cunningham added 19 points and Hamidou Diallo had 13 points for Detroit.
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Terry Rozier rolled up 33 points and Miles Bridges scored six of his 29 points in overtime for Charlotte. LaMelo Ball provided 17 points, Kelly Oubure Jr. had 15 points and Cody Martin posted 13 points. Bridges had 10 rebounds.
Article continues after this advertisementThe Hornets lost for the 10th time in their last 12 games. One of the victories was a 22-point whipping of Detroit.
In regulation, Bey hit a tiebreaking 3-point basket with 14.1 seconds left. After the go-ahead basket from the left corner, the Pistons sent Bridges to the foul line where he made both attempts. Cunningham then made the first of a two-shot foul, but missed the second. The Hornets called timeout with 9.4 seconds to play, with P.J. Washington scoring the tying bucket at the 4.1-second mark.
P.J. Washington follows the shot to force OT in Charlotte!
Watch Here: https://t.co/oz9UCQxdQa pic.twitter.com/0rMBewYIea
— NBA (@NBA) February 28, 2022
Charlotte was ahead 88-82 with 10:22 to play, but the Pistons tied the score at 90-90, and it remained tight the rest of the way.
Cunningham scored four straight points to finally put Detroit back on top, but Rozier responded with a 3-pointer for a 112-110 edge with less than two minutes to play.
The Pistons led 58-54 at halftime, bolstered by Bey’s 13 points. The largest margin in the first half was six points, with each team holding a lead of that size.
Detroit went up 61-54 early in the third quarter, but the Hornets entered the fourth quarter with an 84-82 edge.
The Hornets suffered from 11 first-half turnovers, negating some of their 51.2-percent shooting from the field.
