buzzer-beater

English

Alternative forms

• buzzer beater

Etymology

In the sense of beating out the buzzer which ends a game.

Noun

buzzer-beater (plural buzzer-beaters)

1. (basketball, idiomatic) A shot that wins (or in some usage, ties) a game at the last possible moment.
   • 2013, Pete Birle, On the Hardwood: New York Knicks, MVP Books, →ISBN, page 40:

     The Knicks immediately went 7-0 upon Lin's insertion in the lineup. He dropped 38 against the Lakers and beat Toronto with a buzzer-beater.