Hornets Roll Over Hawks 126-109

The Hornets were down men, but never out

Charlotte came into the game against the Hawks missing both their starting backcourt in Rozier and LaMelo, but also projected 6th man Cody Martin. The Hornets looked incredibly well organised, tough and committed on the defensive end which helped them grind out a win.

The Hawks went up 15-5 early off the back of a 13-0 run. Trae Young and Dejounte Murray managed to get into the paint  finishing with layups on three back to back possessions forcing a timeout from Clifford. 

Out of the timeout Charlotte's bench gave a spark, James Bouknight had a quick 8 points with a mix of three point jumpers and foul shots. Jalen McDaniels also had a nice off the dribble stepback to bring the Hornets within 5. Unfortunately, the defensive rebounding struggles from Thursday's Pelicans game reared it's had, with Capella, Okongwu, Murray and Johnson all grabbing late 1st quarter rebounds to give the Hawks a 30-22 lead.

Fortunately for Charlotte, Trae Young picked up three fouls early in the 3rd quarter shutting him down until the 3 minute mark. During that time Charlotte went on a 16-8 run spurred by Richard, Dennis Smith Jr and some aggressive Hornets defense than led to 12 points of 8 Hawks turnovers, with Murray being particularly at fault with four leading to some easy run outs. Nick Richards continued to make a strong case for the starting role with a quick 9 points 4 rebounds in just 11 minutes of play. JT Thor had his best quarter of the season so far with 6 rebounds and 5 points coming from a sweet corner three and a baseline cut alley oop off a Smith Jr pass. and 6 rebounds.

Charlotte's undermanned roster  managed to hold out for a 4 point lead at the half, leading the Hawks by 59-55 at the half led by James Bouknight's.

The Hornets came out the half shooting a good ball and extended their lead out to 18 points through Hayward and Oubre. Nick Richards then came in and took over the game. Finishing around the rim, big rebounds, blocks. The moment of the game was when Nick had a running lefty dunk down the line and then had a HUGE block the next possession. Charlotte's bench played phenomenally well, scoring a season high 52 points. 

As the half went on the Hornets stopped fouling, stopped giving up offensive rebounds and stifled the Hawks offense. It's true the Hawks could have shot the ball better, but credit Charlotte for good closeouts, stunts and rotations to challenge the majority of the looks. Overall, this was a statement win for the coaching staff, showing their style and system put in place can get results against playoff calibre teams even while missing key players.

Highlights

Nick Richards 20pts 11reb 2blk

Kelly Oubre 24pts 9reb

Dennis Smith Jr 18pts 2reb 6ast 3stl 1blk

James Bouknight 10pts 1reb 2ast 1stl