Raptors win thriller at buzzer in Charlotte, but Ingram leaves early

One of the weirdest nights of the season ended mostly well for the Toronto Raptors.

Having previously lost two of three games this season to the Charlotte Hornets, including one where a buzzer-beater by star rookie Kon Knueppel sent the Hornets to overtime, where they would win, Toronto turned the tables. After Immanuel Quickley allowed LaMelo Ball to blow by him for an uncontested layup with 1.6 seconds left to put the home side up by two, Quickley was freed by a great Scottie Barnes screen and calmly drilled a three-pointer at the buzzer for a 97-96 win.

A pushover for years, these Hornets seem different. Even without two key starters (scoring wing Brandon Miller and shot-blocking centre Ryan Kalkbrenner) they kept the Raptors in check most of the night. They were full of confidence having recently crushed title favourite (and defending NBA champion) Oklahoma City while winning nine of 18 contests before the game, so this was a notable win by Toronto, especially considering they lost Brandon Ingram for all but 11 minutes and were without Barnes for much of the fourth quarter.

Some takeaways from a wild one:

As bad as it gets

You will rarely see shooting as bad as what the Raptors managed against Charlotte. The team shot 2-for-20, yes, you read that right, in the first half, yet trailed by only five points thanks largely to forcing a lot of turnovers.

The Raptors then missed seven of eight three-point attempts in the third quarter, but still at one point trailed by only a point and by just six at the end of the quarter.

Things shifted in the fourth quarter, but it was quite late in the game. Had Toronto shot anywhere close to what the team is capable of earlier it might have resulted in an easy win. Four-for-six work in the fourth, including Quickley’s winner, made up for some of what went down earlier.

Toronto’s starters went an ugly 3-for-22 from three (Quickley was 2-for-10 before his memorable make, RJ Barrett 1-for-7). The team shot 20.6% from outside.

Ironically it was Sandro Mamukelashvili, in the midst of a deep shooting slump, who did the best work shooting from outside for Toronto. He had made only three of 19 attempts over his last five games before canning two of four, both in the second half.

Ingram goes down

Raptors scoring leader Brandon Ingram exited the game after 1.5 quarters due to a right thumb sprain and did not return.

The good news was X-rays were negative, according to TSN Raptors sideline reporter Kayla Grey. Ingram had scored only six points in his 11 minutes, shooting 2-for-7 as part of a struggling Toronto offence. Ingram had reached while defending Knueppel.

Acquired last February but unable to suit up until this pre-season due to a severe ankle injury suffered in December, 2024, Ingram had been remarkably durable in his first months as an active Raptor. He had said he prided himself on being in the lineup every night. Ingram and franchise player Barnes were the only Raptors to suit up for the first 38 games of the season.

The run of 38 straight games played was the third-longest of Ingram’s career, surpassed only by 72 in a row to start his time with the Los Angeles Lakers after being drafted second overall and 46 consecutive in his fifth year, while with the New Orleans Pelicans.

Ingram played in only 18 total games last season, but bounced back to average 22.2 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists while playing perhaps the best defence of his career to help spark the Raptors to a good start to 2025-26.

Sophomore wing Ja’Kobe Walter started the second half in place of Ingram, but was quiet. Ingram’s fellow Duke alum Barrett stepped up with a monster finish, willing Toronto into the fight repeatedly.

The Raptors finish a short road trip Friday with a game in Boston against the Celtics before hosting the Philadelphia 76ers for consecutive games Sunday and Monday.

Chairman of the boards

Raptors rookie Collin Murray-Boyles continues to play strong basketball as the fill-in starter at centre for Jakob Poeltl.

Murray-Boyles had his best overall game of the season in a win over Atlanta Monday, then followed up by becoming just the ninth first-year Raptor to grab at least 15 rebounds in a game. Only Charlie Villanueva (18), Barnes (17), Chris Bosh, Marcus Camby, Ed Davis, Jamario Moon and Hall of Famers Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady have also accomplished the feat.

Murray-Boyles took only three shots, but had three assists and made both of his free throw attempts while playing his typically good defence.