David West had 23 points and 10 rebounds as the New Orleans Hornets escaped with an 85-81 victory over the visiting Toronto Raptors on Monday.

The Hornets (26-16) were fortunate to earn their fifth straight victory after trailing the woeful Raptors (13-28) for most of the second half. New Orleans gradually chipped away at a double-digit deficit and jumped in front on a Jarrett Jack jumper with 4:20 remaining.

The teams exchanged the lead until the final minute, when West put the Hornets in front for good on a 19-foot jumper with 31.7 seconds remaining. After a Raptors turnover was overturned upon review, Toronto forward Amir Johnson missed a short jumper that would have tied the game with five seconds left.

The Hornets grabbed the rebound, and West nailed a pair of free throws to round out the scoring.

Emeka Okafor had 17 points and 16 rebounds – including a career-best 12 on the offensive end – while Chris Paul added 11 assists but shot just 1-for-8 from the field to finish with nine points.

DeMar DeRozan led the way with 23 points for the Raptors, losers of four in a row. Amir Johnson added 17 points while Andrea Bargnani, Toronto's leading scorer, managed just 11 on 4-of-17 shooting in defeat.