Julius Randle Muscles Knicks Past Hornets

The Hornets fall to 7-19 on the season.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - The Charlotte Hornets dropped their fourth straight game on Friday night, falling to the visiting New York Knicks, 121-102.

New York's size and length bothered Charlotte from the outset. By my count, the Hornets had five shots from within five feet of the basket in the first 15 minutes of the game. When Mitchell Robinson didn't record one of his three blocked shots, he made sure to stay vertical and make it difficult for the Hornets to get anything close. The problem is, those five shots that were close misses were all uncontested or open looks and had nothing to do with Robinson. When you combine that with multiple three-point attempts rimming out, it felt like there was a lid on the basket for Charlotte.

Julius Randle also gave the Hornets fits with 19 first half points, connecting on a trio of threes and getting to the line five times. He would finish the game with 33 points on 9/22 shooting. If it weren't for New York going 5/20 from beyond the arc, the deficit at the half would have been much larger than 55-49.

It was a tug-o-war for momentum in the first five minutes of the third quarter. New York took advantage of P.J. Washington picking up his fourth foul and with him on the bench, they rallied to go on a 14-4 run, which promoted a timeout from Steve Clifford. Following the timeout, Terry Rozier scored seven quick points during a Charlotte 9-2 run to bring it back to a six-point game, 71-65.

The final seven minutes of the third ultimately decided the game. Charlotte couldn't buy a shot going 2/9 for the remainder of the quarter and also turned it over three times. New York closed out the quarter on an 11-1 run, sparked by second-year guard Miles McBride, who drained a three, came up with a steal and an assist in transition, and then hit a mid-range jumper with 0.2 seconds left on the clock. 

Second chance points played a big role in tonight's game, as it has in several of the Hornets' losses this season. New York recorded 28 second-chance points, which is 16 more than they allow on average.

The Hornets will have the day off tomorrow before traveling to Philadelphia to take on the 76ers on Sunday evening at 6 p.m. EST.

TEAM STATS (ACCUMULATIVE)

1ST: NYK 22-20

NYK: 9/23 FG | 3/12 3FG | 15 REB | 5 AST | 6 TO | 12 PIP

CHA: 8/22 FG | 2/8 3FG | 10 REB | 3 AST | 2 TO | 10 PIP

2ND: NYK 55-49

NYK: 20/50 FG | 5/20 3FG | 26 REB | 9 AST | 7 TO | 30 PIP

CHA: 19/46 FG | 2/12 3FG | 26 REB | 6 AST | 7 TO | 32 PIP

3RD: NYK 89-71

NYK: 31/72 FG | 8/24 3FG | 40 REB | 16 AST | 9 TO | 46 PIP

CHA: 27/65 FG | 4/20 3FG | 36 REB | 13 AST | 11 TO | 42 PIP

4TH: NYK 

NYK: 41/94 FG | 13/35 3FG | 48 REB | 25 AST | 13 TO | 54 PIP

CHA: 37/84 FG | 6/26 3FG | 46 REB | 16 AST | 13 TO | 54 PIP

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