Jan. 4--The Charlotte Bobcats had the first five-point possession in franchise history Saturday, en route to a 102-92 victory against the Milwaukee Bucks.
That possession came with 4 1/2 minutes left and involved a flagrant foul called against Bucks forward Charlie Villanueva for throwing Bobcats forward Gerald Wallace to the floor as Wallace drove to the basket. That gave Wallace two free throws (he made them both) and the Bobcats retained possession. Incensed at the call, Villanueva drew a technical foul, and Matt Carroll hit the ensuing free throw.
Then Wallace (24 points) hit two more free throws, off a shooting foul by Villanueva, to complete the five-point possession.
The Bobcats (12-21) led by double digits most of the second half to end a five-game winning streak by the Bucks in this series. Boris Diaw had 21 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Bobcats, and Richard Jefferson finished with 19 points for the Bucks.
The Bobcats were particularly productive converting Bucks turnovers into the easy baskets. The Bucks gave away the ball 14 times in the first three quarters, resulting in 24 Bobcats points.
The Bobcats outscored the Bucks 27-15 over the last eight minutes of the second quarter to lead 51-42 at halftime. Rookie point guard D.J. Augustin scored all nine of his first-half points in that surge from a three-point Milwaukee lead.
Coach Larry Brown went deep into his bench in the first half, playing 10. Augustin and veteran forward Juwan Howard combined for 25 minutes off the bench, and Howard contributed with four points and three rebounds in 10 minutes.
Perhaps the biggest factor in that first-half lead was earning and making free throws; the Bobcats were 15-of-16 at the foul line. Starters Emeka Okafor, Diaw and Raymond Felton combined to make 9 of 10, with Okafor representing the only miss at the line.
The Bobcats played their third straight game without Raja Bell, out with a groin strain. Matt Carroll continues to start at shooting guard in Bell's place.
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