Kemba Scores 28 as the Charlotte Hornets Beat the Indiana Pacers, 100-88
Kemba continues his stellar play as he scores 28 points to lead the Charlotte Hornets past the Indiana Pacers at home on national TV.
100. 100. 170. Final. 88
The Charlotte Hornets (28-35) were able to defeat the Indiana Pacers (32-31) as they grabbed a big win on national TV behind Kemba Walker‘s 28-point performance. This was the first time Steve Clifford’s side has won back to back games since late-January. Despite Paul George‘s 36 points, the home team was able to hold the Pacers to only 88 in this one.
Ramon Sessions (knee surgery) and Miles Plumlee (calf strain) continued to sit out. Frank Kaminsky (AC joint sprain) also missed the game but there’s good news surrounding him as he may be back in 1-2 weeks. Other than that trio, the Hornets were in full force with Cody Zeller off of a minutes restriction.
Turning Point
After trailing 11-9 early in the first quarter, the Hornets closed the opening period with an 18-5 run to take a 27-16 lead into the second. After that run, Charlotte never looked back as they held at least a seven-point lead for the remainder of the game. They even pushed their lead to 24 points at one point in the second quarter as they completely dominated the first half, 58-37.
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Who Stepped Up
Kemba Walker led the Hornets once again as he finished the night with a team-high 28 points to go along with seven assists and six rebounds. Coming fresh off of being named the Eastern Conference player of the week, Charlotte’s all-star point guard was all over the court in this one. Nicolas Batum added 21 points, four assists and four boards as he provided a nice secondary scoring punch.
Jeremy Lamb led the second unit as he scored 14 points and grabbed five rebounds off of the bench. Cody Zeller chipped in 13 points and 11 boards while Michael Kidd-Gilchrist also recorded a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds. Marvin Williams had the most disappointing game as he only scored six points on 1-7 shooting in 39 minutes.
The Pacers were led by Paul George who kept them in this one with a game-high 36 points as well as getting 10 rebounds and five assists. CJ Miles scored 16 points and Jeff Teague was close to a double-double with 10 points and eight assists. Monte Ellis came off of the bench and scored 12 while former Hornet Al Jefferson was held scoreless in only six minutes.
Play of the Game:
Here were some honorable mentions:
Tweet of the Game:
Finally figured out what was up with Batum. He ditched the beard for a goatee tonight.
— HornetsGIFs (@HornetsGIFs) March 7, 2017
"Quick Stings"
- Cody Zeller recorded his fourth double-double of the season.
- The Hornets have now made 10+ three’s in six consecutive games.
- Charlotte’s now 9-1 when Kemba and Nic both score 20+.
- MKG recorded his 18th double-digit rebounding game.
- Charlotte held the Pacers to only 37 points in the first half.
With the victory, the Hornets improved to 2-1 against the Pacers on the season. The two sides have one more meeting later this year in Indiana. Charlotte will look to take the season series for the second straight season.
Next: Kemba Named East Player of the Week
In their next outing, the Charlotte Hornets will hit the road to take on the Miami Heat. It will be the third meeting between the division rivals as Miami currently holds a 2-0 lead in the season series. Steve Clifford’s side will be looking for their third straight win as they take on the surging Heat.