CHARLOTTE, N.C. — DeMar DeRozan believes the Toronto Raptors' recent playoff experience is starting to pay big dividends in close games.

DeRozan continued his torrid pace, scoring 10 of his 34 points in the fourth quarter as the Raptors rallied from 10 points down to snap the Charlotte Hornets' four-game winning streak with a 113-111 victory Friday night.

The Raptors fell behind 91-81 with 9:30 left, but fought back to take the lead behind DeRozan's shooting.

"We've got a lot of playoff experience now and we know how hard it is to win and what it takes to win," said DeRozan, whose Raptors lost last season in the Eastern Conference finals. "We thrive in moments like this — and that's what it came down to."

DeRozan's latest big night offset a huge performance from Charlotte guard Kemba Walker, who scored 40 points on 12-of-19 shooting, including 7 of 12 from 3-point range. Walker also had 10 rebounds and six assists.

DeRozan came into the game averaging an NBA-high 34.1 points. He shot 14 of 26 from the field as the Raptors won for the fifth time in six games.

DeRozan has scored at least 30 points in seven of Toronto's eight games.

"The problem is there is no (defensive) scheme for that," Hornets coach Steve Clifford said of DeRozan. "He's a mid-range, iso(lation), pull-up player. ... Those 1-on-1, top-of-key stuff, he's really good at that and always has been. He's on a roll right now and there's just not much you can do."

With the game tied at 97, Nic Batum drove the lane and dished to Cody Zeller for a dunk. Marvin Williams followed with a 3 from the top of the arc to push Charlotte's lead to five with 4 minutes remaining, revving up the crowd.

But DeRozan came right back with two mid-range jumpers, and Lucas Nogueira's tip-in gave the Raptors the lead for good.

"He took the game over," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said about DeRozan. "We wanted to go to him. ... We made it more of a 1-on-1 against the switch. And he executed. He hit some big-time buckets and converted. That's what we've got to have out of him and Kyle (Lowry) in those important moments."

TIP-INS

Raptors: Outscored the Hornets 50-32 in the paint. ... Lowry added 19 points and eight rebounds despite foul trouble. ... Cory Joseph had a season-best 12 points off the bench, leading all reserves in the game.

Hornets: Made a season-high 15 3-pointers. ... Walker has scored at least 20 points in seven straight games. ... Treveon Graham got his first NBA start in place of Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (back). Graham is normally not even in the rotation, but Clifford didn't want to break up his second unit.

STOPPING KEMBA

The Raptors decided to "blitz" Walker with double teams down the stretch to keep him from scoring.

"Well, we had to do something," Casey said. "He still got 40. He was running loose. He's one of the toughest guys in the league to guard 1-on-1."

HIBBERT RETURNS

Roy Hibbert returned after missing the previous five games with right knee soreness and looked tentative at times. He finished with 10 points on 3-of-5 shooting and had two rebounds in 13 1/2 minutes of action.

POOR BENCH PLAY

One game after the Hornets' reserves outscored Jazz backups 41-20, Clifford criticized his bench.

"I love our team, but we are just too up and down with our bench play," he said. "You have to know what you're going to get in terms of effort, purpose, defence and rebounding. You can't be really good one night and really bad the next."

UP NEXT

Raptors: Toronto returns home to play the New York Knicks on Saturday night.

Hornets: Face a stiff test Saturday night when they visit the NBA champion Cleveland Cavaliers.