Sixers Smash Hornets, 144-114

The Hornets move to 40-38 on the season.

PHILADELPHIA, PA - After a promising start, the Charlotte Hornets were blown out of the water on Saturday afternoon, falling to the Philadelphia 76ers 144-114. The loss drops the Hornets to 40-38 on the season with just four games remaining.

It wasn't the smoothest start for either team on the offensive end as it took quite a while before there was any rhythm. Both teams packed the lane tight, not allowing easy buckets at the rim, and made the opposition really work to get off a shot. Once Tobias Harris saw his first shot go down, Philadelphia got into a flow. Harris buried three consecutive threes in the first quarter and went 4/7 from deep in the first half.

As expected, Joel Embiid was a problem for the Hornets inside. He muscled his way through contact to knock down shots, draw fouls, and pull down rebounds. The Hornets were getting pounded on the glass (30-17) as shooting guard Terry Rozier lead the team with just four boards at the half.

Philadelphia threw the ball all over the place, but the Hornets were also very active, getting their mitts on the ball nine times through two quarters of play. Rozier had three steals while P.J. Washington and LaMelo Ball each had two. Despite creating extra possessions, Charlotte only managed to score seven points off of those 12 first half turnovers. 

After a P.J. Washington tip-in, the Sixers went on a 9-0 run, creating some separation with a nine-point lead. James Borrego quickly called timeout and it allowed the Hornets to respond with a 13-0 run. Back-to-back steals tied the game up at 38-38 and a LaMelo Ball three gave the Hornets its first lead in nearly ten minutes. The 76ers took a 58-53 lead into the half.

Things unraveled quickly for the Hornets in the third quarter as the Sixers got red hot from three and even the floor for that matter. As a team, Philadelphia shot a blistering 17/22 from the field and 7/10 from deep leading to a 45-point quarter. There's not much you can do when a team shoots it that well except to match it on the other end. Philly's size and length really bothered the Hornets making it difficult to get good looks from any spot on the floor. 

Borrego didn't bother trotting his starters out there in the fourth quarter with the game already well in the Sixers' hands. The Hornets will take the next couple of days to regroup and prepare for the final regular season meeting with the Miami Heat on Tuesday.

BOX SCORE

CHA: 26-27-27-34-114

PHI: 29-29-45-41-144

TEAM STATS (ACCUMULATIVE)

1st

CHA: 9/23 FG | 2/8 3FG | 11 REB | 14 PIP | 1 TOs

PHI: 11/21 FG | 4/10 3FG | 14 REB | 14 PIP | 4 TOs

2nd

CHA: 19/46 FG | 6/18 3FG | 17 REB | 26 PIP | 4 TOs

PHI: 23/41 FG | 7/20 3FG | 30 REB | 32 PIP | 12 TOs

3rd

CHA: 30/66 FG | 8/23 3FG | 23 REB | 44 PIP | 12 TOs

PHI: 40/63 FG | 14/30 3FG | 38 REB | 52 PIP | 16 TOs

4th

CHA: 42/87 FG | 11/30 3FG | 32 REB | 62 PIP | 17 TOs

PHI: 53/87 FG | 21/43 3FG | 47 REB | 64 PIP | 19 TOs

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