CHARLOTTE, N.C. _ Small ball found a home Monday night at Spectrum Center.
Down by as many as 20 points, new Charlotte Hornets coach James Borrego went with an unorthodox lineup that had 6-foot-7 Michael Kidd-Gilchrist as the power forward and 6-8 Nic Batum as the center. It got the Hornets all the way back to a fourth-quarter tie before the Milwaukee Bucks held on, 113-112, in both teams' season opener.
Hornets star Kemba Walker (41 points) gave the Hornets their first lead with 36 seconds left, making two free throws off a foul by Ersan Ilyasova. Bucks star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo responded with a drive, drawing two free throws off a foul by Hornets center Willy Hernangomez with 24 seconds remaining. He made both.
Walker then drove the lane and missed a layup. Teammate Marvin Williams grabbed the offensive rebound and passed to Batum, who missed a 3-pointer to end the game.
That undersized unit included Walker, plus Tony Parker and Malik Monk (18 points).
Antetokounmpo finished with 25 points, 18 rebounds and eight assists, despite foul trouble that kept him on the bench much of the second half.
