NBA: Young, Hunter star as Hawks sting Hornets

LOS ANGELES -- Trae Young scored 24 points as the Atlanta Hawks thrashed the Charlotte Hornets 132-103 to keep their playoff hopes alive on Wednesday.

A decisive burst of scoring from Young and De'Andre Hunter in the third quarter saw the Hawks take control against an outclassed Charlotte team at Atlanta's State Farm Arena.

Atlanta will now face Cleveland in the final round of the play-in tournament on Friday, where a place in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs -- against top-seeded Miami -- will be up for grabs.

"We're clicking at the right time and this is the time to be clicking," Young said after the blowout. "We're a good team."

After edging into a 60-52 halftime lead, Atlanta effectively sealed victory with a devastating third quarter performance, outscoring the Hornets 42-24 and racing into a lead that stretched to 26 points at one stage.

Hunter and Young combined for 30 of those points in the third quarter, Hunter scoring 16 and Young adding 14, including three from outside the arc.

Hunter finished with 22 points as Atlanta's balanced offense once again shared the scoring around. 

Six Atlanta players finished in double figures, with Danilo Gallinari claiming 18 points, Clint Capela chipping in with 15 and Kevin Huerter and Bogdan Bogdanovic adding 13 points apiece.

"It took me a couple of quarters to get going, but my teammates did a hell of a job making plays," Young said. 

"We've got a lot of guys who can play. We've dealt with a lot of injuries this year but we've got a lot of guys who can step up and make plays anytime throughout the game."

In Wednesday's other play-in game, the San Antonio Spurs face the New Orleans Pelicans in another sudden death elimination game. 

The winner of the Spurs-Pelicans game will advance to a clash with the Los Angeles Clippers for a place in the Western Conference playoffs and a meeting against top seeds Phoenix.

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Embiid, Harris stop Sixers rot as Hornets routed

NEW YORK -- Joel Embiid scored 29 points as the Philadelphia 76ers halted their three-game losing streak with an emphatic 144-114 rout of the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday.

The Sixers had slumped to defeats against the Phoenix Suns, Milwaukee Bucks and lowly Detroit Pistons heading into Saturday's early home game at the Wells Fargo Center.

But Embiid and a balanced Sixers offense were in no mood to concede a fourth straight loss against a Charlotte team in 10th place in the Eastern Conference.

The Sixers held a narrow 58-53 lead at half-time but pulled away with a 45-point third-quarter performance before pouring in 41 points in the fourth quarter to seal a crushing win.

Embiid finished with 29 points, 14 rebounds and six assists while Tobias Harris had 23 points, five rebounds and four assists.

Tyrese Maxey added 19 points while James Harden finished with 12 points and 13 assists.

The Sixers improved to 47-30 with the victory to remain in fourth place in the Eastern Conference, within touching distance of a playoff place.

Miles Bridges led the Charlotte scoring with 20 points, with P.J. Washington adding 14 and point guard LaMelo Ball 13.

"That was a great game for us, coming back off a disappointing loss in Detroit," the Sixers' Harris said afterwards. 

"Just being able to push the pace today and get going was big for us."

Harris said the Sixers had been determined to start strongly after half-time following recent poor performances in the third quarter.

"We haven't had the greatest of starts in the third quarter in the last few games, so that was an emphasis for us - we had a lot of energy in that third quarter," he said.

The Sixers can clinch a playoff place on Sunday with a win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, who defeated the already-eliminated New York Knicks 119-101 in Saturday's other early game.

The Cavaliers are in seventh place in the Eastern Conference on 43-35, just outside the top six automatic playoff places.

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Nikola Jokic's triple-double leads Nuggets past Hornets

It took time for Nikola Jokic to get cranked up, but he carried the Denver Nuggets during second-half stretches on his way to a triple-double in a 113-109 road victory against the Charlotte Hornets on Monday night.

Jokic finished with 26 points, 19 rebounds and 11 assists, all team highs.

In a late-game, eight-minute span, Denver managed just seven points -- and Jokic had all of them. The Nuggets, who led by 13 early in the fourth quarter, had to hold off a furious rally from the Hornets.

Aaron Gordon scored 19 of his 21 points in the first half for the Nuggets (45-31), who won for just the third time in their past six games. Will Barton racked up 18 points and Jeff Green and Monte Morris both had 14 points.

Jokic hit two free throws with 1:25 left as Denver went up 109-104. LaMelo Ball scored for the Hornets before Morris sank two foul shots. Charlotte's Terry Rozier then connected on a 3-pointer.

Charlotte appeared to get the defensive stop it needed when Jokic missed a shot, but he grabbed his own rebound and was fouled. He made two free throws with 8.6 seconds left to push the lead to four.

Miles Bridges poured in 27 points to go with 11 rebounds for the Hornets (39-37). Ball had 22 points and 11 assists, Kelly Oubre Jr., Isaiah Thomas and Rozier all added 12 points and P.J. Washington posted 10 points.

Charlotte, which was coming off a road victory Sunday night against the Brooklyn Nets, hit only 13 of 42 attempts from 3-point range on Monday.

The Nuggets led 102-91 with 7 1/2 minutes to play. Charlotte tallied the next eight points, with Thomas and Bridges hitting 3-pointers to complete that part of the rally.

The Hornets held a 57-56 halftime edge despite shooting 5-for-20 from beyond the arc.

The Nuggets started to take control with a 13-0 run in the third quarter to move to an 80-71 lead. Jokic scored seven points during that stretch, including a free throw on a technical foul when Charlotte power forward Montrezl Harrell was ejected following a dust-up with Jokic and Gordon.

-reuters

Rozier guides Hornets past Spurs, as Charlotte notches rare home win

Terry Rozier's 31 points lifted Charlotte to a rare home win Saturday as the Hornets posted a 123-117 victory against the San Antonio Spurs.

LaMelo Ball racked up 24 points, P.J. Washington and Montrezl Harrell each had 15 points, Cody Martin and Kelly Oubre Jr. notched 12 points apiece and Miles Bridges finished with 10 points.

The Hornets won for just the 2nd time in their last 10 home games in Saturday's opener of a 3-game homestand that might prove vital to Charlotte getting back on track.

The Spurs have lost 4 consecutive games, keeping coach Gregg Popovich from matching Don Nelson's NBA record of 1,335 regular-season victories.

Keldon Johnson's 33 points and Dejounte Murray's 25 points, 10 assists and 9 rebounds were key to keeping the Spurs within range. Devin Vassell added 14 points, Jakob Poeltl had 11 points and Joshua Primo notched 10 points for San Antonio.

Charlotte was 14-for-14 on 4th-quarter free throws and it needed that production to keep the lead. Cody Martin made the last 4 to secure the victory.

Rozier shot 10 for 18 from the field, including 6 for 8 on 3-pointers. Five different Charlotte players made a 3-point basket as the team shot 16 for 42 from long range.

Meanwhile, San Antonio shot 11 for 37 on 3-pointers.

The Spurs went up 97-91 late in the third quarter before the Hornets scored the next eight points, all in the final 56 seconds of the quarter.

When Rozier drained a 3 with less than 5 1/2 minutes remaining in the fourth, Charlotte's lead jumped to 113-107.

This game was remarkably tight throughout. The Hornets outscored San Antonio 31-30 in both the first and second quarters. Each team scored 37 points in the third quarter.

The top rebounder for each team failed to score in double figures. Mason Plumlee had 13 rebounds and four points for the Hornets, while Zach Collins pulled in 10 boards to go with five points for the Spurs.

-reuters

NBA: Ball, Hornets end 6-game slide by pulverizing Pistons

LaMelo Ball racked up 31 points and 12 assists, Terry Rozier notched a triple-double and the visiting Charlotte Hornets snapped a 6-game losing streak by pounding the Detroit Pistons 141-119 on Friday.

Rozier had 25 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds as the Hornets defeated the Pistons for the 15th consecutive time. Miles Bridges supplied 25 points and Montrezl Harrell, acquired from Washington on Thursday, contributed 15 points and 6 rebounds in his Charlotte debut.

PJ Washington added 13 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists and Kelly Oubre Jr. chipped in 11 points. Charlotte had 36 assists on its 54 made field goals.

Detroit's losing streak increased to 7 games and 11 of its last 12.

Saddiq Bey led the Pistons with 25 points and Hamidou Diallo supplied 16 points with 7 rebounds. Isaiah Stewart had 15 points and 12 rebounds and Jerami Grant also scored 15. Killian Hayes added a double-double with 11 points and 12 assists.

The Hornets outscored the Pistons 43-26 in the 2nd quarter while racing to a 79-55 halftime lead. Charlotte's backcourt of Rozier and Ball combined for 32 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. Bey led the Pistons with 17 points.

The Hornets made 56.9 percent from the field and knocked down 9 3-pointers.

Charlotte was only up by 2 after Bey hit a 3-pointer with 11 minutes left in the half. The Hornets then reeled off 12 unanswered points, including 5 from Oubre.

Cade Cunningham made a 3-pointer with 7 minutes remaining in the half to cut Charlotte's lead to 52-43. Ball answered with a 3-pointer and the Hornets kept their lead in double digits the rest of the way. That basket sparked a 17-2 run, featuring 11 points from Rozier.

The Hornets led 90-70 midway through the 3rd quarter, then went on a 10-2 run. Ball made a pair of 3-pointers and Harrell capped it off with a dunk. Ball scored five points in the final minute of the half as Charlotte led 110-87 after 3 quarters.

-reuters

Michael Jordan praises ‘little brother’ Kobe Bryant

Michael Jordan paid tribute to Kobe Bryant in a pre-game video before Monday night’s matchup between the Los Angeles Lakers and Charlotte Hornets.

Jordan, who owns the Hornets, did not attend the game but made sure the retiring Bryant got a warm send off from the Charlotte organization.

“I’m a big fan,” said Jordan. “I still love watching you play.”

In the video, Jordan describes the 37-year-old Bryant as a “big help to the game of basketball.” He then refers to him as a little brother.

“We are very proud of what you have accomplished over the years. Have a great game. But not too good​.”

Jordan competed against Bryant in the latter part of his brilliant NBA career.

Bryant announced recently he would retire at the end of the 2015–16 season.

Star shock

Meanwhile, Bryant was stunned to learn he’s the runaway leader in fan voting for the 65th NBA All-Star Game as he battles through his 20th and final season with a lackluster Los Angeles Lakers team.

Amid debate earlier this month on whether he deserved an 18th all-star appearance, Bryant said it would be “great” to play once more in the mid-season exhibition, but said he’d support the showcase no matter what.

When early returns were announced on Friday, Bryant led the likes of reigning Most Valuable Player Stephen Curry of Golden State and Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James.

“I was like, ‘What the hell?’” the 37-year-old said. “Shocked doesn’t do it justice. It’s exciting. What can I say? Just thankful.”

source: interaksyon.com