From the ashes.

The Hornets spent most of the night watching in frustration with their game going up in smoke. Somehow they emerged at the finish, coming from seven points down in the final minute of regulation, then getting a driving layup from Baron Davis at the end of overtime for a 92-91 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers.

The unlikely win moved them within a game of .500 at 17-18, gave them a 4-1 finish to a five-game homestand and, perhaps most significantly, rewarded their persistence with a boost of confidence.

"It was huge," said Davis, who had 19 points and 15 assists. "We needed a victory like this to have the confidence to know we can win close games. Even though we were down a lot and playing terrible basketball, we just had to stay at it."

Davis provided the winning shot with 1.5 seconds left in the extra period, putting the ball inbounds from the baseline to Elden Campbell, then getting it back quickly as Campbell set a pick. Davis made a short turn into the lane and kissed the ball off the glass and into the basket.

By that time it should have been no surprise to those who remained in the Coliseum crowd of 13,087, the second-best of the season for a game not involving Michael Jordan. Some had left earlier with the Hornets down seven with 58 seconds to play.

Those who stuck around got louder and louder as the improbable comeback unfolded.

The Hornets, down 17 earlier in the game, tried time and again to rally. But each time they drew close their defense couldn't manage a stop and the Clippers appeared well on the way to a rare road win.

"I said it was ours five times," said the Clippers' Eric Piatkowski.

He wasn't the only one thinking Los Angeles had this one. The Hornets had given no one reason to think otherwise.

They shot 36.7 percent, were getting clobbered on the boards early on and seemed to have no way of slowing the Clippers' high-speed fast break.

Campbell, averaging 23 points in Charlotte's previous three games, was in foul trouble and struggling, shooting 2-for-10. David Wesley had missed each of his eight shots. Davis was 5-for-16.

They were getting sparse results for their effort. But they had not cashed it in.

"There was no give-up," Wesley said. "We found a way."

Indeed. Wesley unloaded a trio of three-pointers in a 38-second span, bringing the Hornets within two at 81-79 with 28.8 seconds left.

"I was struggling all night," he said. "But I can't complain about the timing."

After Earl Boykins hit one of two free throws to give Los Angeles an 82-79 lead, Wesley started up on a fourth three-point attempt. Quentin Richardson got a hand on that one and the ball popped loose. Reserve guard Bryce Drew grabbed it, handed it to Davis, then ran, unaccompanied by a defender, to the left wing.

Davis fired the ball back to Drew, who drilled a three-pointer with 7.7 seconds left to tie it at 82. The Clippers were unable to get off a final shot and the game moved into the five-minute overtime.

The comeback at that point was fueled by Wesley, Drew, Davis with six assists and Stacey Augmon with 4-of-4 shooting in the fourth for eight points.