Hornets
Hornets win the glass and shake off Randle's 33 to beat the Nets
The Charlotte Hornets beat the Brooklyn Nets 110-103 at Barclays Center. Charlotte led after every quarter, won the rebounding battle 58-47 and got 33 bench points. Brooklyn is still looking for its first win, and Charlotte is back in the win column.
By the Hoops Nightly Desk · updated 1 h ago01The story of the nightThe turning pointCharlotte took control early and never gave it back.
Charlotte took control early and never gave it back. The Hornets won the first quarter 27-23 and the second 27-25 to lead 54-48 at halftime. Brooklyn pushed back in the third. The Nets scored 33 points in that quarter, but Charlotte answered with 32 and still led 86-81 going into the fourth. Brooklyn's biggest lead of the night was 7. Charlotte's was 10. The lead changed hands 7 times, but the Hornets closed it out. They won the fourth quarter 24-22 and kept the Nets from getting the stops they needed late.
02Top performersGrayson Allen led Charlotte off the bench with 21 points on 6-of-9 shooting.
Grayson Allen led Charlotte off the bench with 21 points on 6-of-9 shooting. He made 5 of 8 threes and all 4 of his free throws, and he was +20 in 28.8 minutes. Naz Reid added 20 points, 11 rebounds and 7 assists. Dennis Schroder scored 19 on 7-of-13 shooting with 6 assists. Moussa Diabate had 17 points, 8 rebounds and 5 steals. For Brooklyn, Julius Randle scored 33 on 11-of-18 shooting with 8 rebounds and 7 assists. Michael Porter Jr. added 26 points and made 5 of 11 threes.
03Where it was wonThe Nets shot better, 45.0% to 44.1%, but Charlotte got more shots.
The Nets shot better, 45.0% to 44.1%, but Charlotte got more shots. The Hornets out-rebounded Brooklyn 58-47 and took 93 field goal attempts to the Nets' 80. Charlotte made 15 threes on 48 attempts. Brooklyn made 12 of 31. The Hornets also won in the paint, 48-44, on the fast break, 12-8, and off the bench, 33-25. Brooklyn's edge came at the free throw line, where it went 19 of 25 to Charlotte's 13 of 15. The Nets also scored 26 points off turnovers to Charlotte's 21. But Brooklyn turned it over 22 times, and that cancelled much of the gain.
04The bench made the differenceCharlotte's reserves swung the game.
Charlotte's reserves swung the game. Allen was the headliner, but Ryan Kalkbrenner was +22 in 14.0 minutes with 4 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks. Royce O'Neale was +15 with 8 points. Brooklyn's bench went the other way. Moritz Wagner was -15, Nolan Traore was -13 and Mikel Brown Jr. was -9. Noah Clowney was efficient, going 3 of 3 for 9 points, but he was still -6. Charlotte's starters had uneven nights. Brandon Miller shot 7 of 21 and 3 of 14 from three, and Diabate finished at -16 despite his 5 steals.
05What it meansFor Charlotte, this was a win built on effort plays: rebounds, steals and extra shots.
For Charlotte, this was a win built on effort plays: rebounds, steals and extra shots. The Hornets got 9 steals and still won with Miller struggling from the field. They will need cleaner ball security, after committing 20 turnovers. For Brooklyn, Randle and Porter combined for most of the offense, and the rest of the roster did not keep up. Egor Demin went 2 of 10 and 0 of 5 from three. The Nets came in 10th in the East and are still winless. They beat Charlotte 124-90 on October 6, but this night went the other way.
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