Down four starters on the night, the Hornets offered up a valiant effort on Tuesday at home against the Lakers before falling short down the stretch, 101-93.
Charlotte had its chances late, cutting a double-digit fourth-quarter lead down to one point on multiple occasions. However, timely 3-pointers from Alex Caruso and Dennis Schroder down the stretch and empty possessions for Charlotte offensively stalled out the comeback.
Devonte’ Graham scored 13 points in the fourth quarter, including knocking down a 3-pointer with 1:54 left to cut the lead to 92-91. The Hornets had a chance to take the lead after an Andre Drummond turnover but followed with a turnover of their own before Alex Caruso buried a dagger 3-pointer to put the guests up 95-91 with 45.2 seconds left.
Graham finished with a team-high 19 points, Jalen McDaniels added 16 and Caleb Martin had his first career double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds.