Shorthanded Charlotte Hornets lose to the Los Angeles Lakers at home, 110-99

Missing a number of key players, Kemba Walker and the Charlotte Hornets fell to the Lonzo Ball led Los Angeles Lakers at home.

The Charlotte Hornets (9-16) were defeated by the Los Angeles Lakers (10-15) as they dropped their third consecutive game. This marks the Hornets’ seventh loss in their last eight games. Despite Kemba Walker and Dwight Howard both scoring 20+ points, the home team didn’t have enough to overcome the Lakers who had six players in double figures.

Charlotte had to deal with a number of injuries as Cody Zeller (torn meniscus), Frank Kaminsky (right ankle sprain) and Jeremy Lamb (shin contusion) were all out. Nicolas Batum (elbow soreness) was a game-time decision but ended up starting and playing 18 minutes. With all of the injuries, Stephen Silas (who is filling in for Steve Clifford) gave more minutes to Johnny O’Bryant, Malik Monk, Treveon Graham and Dwayne Bacon.

Game Story

The shorthanded Hornets were on the second night of a back to back and it showed. This youthful Lakers team out ran their opponents all game as they scored 28 fast break points. Charlotte played well early on and actually had a lead at halftime and for the entire third quarter. The fourth period was the turning point as LA outscored Charlotte, 34-24, in the final 12 minutes. It was a one-point game with 7:04 left in the game when the Lakers went on a 16-3 run.

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Player of the Game

Dwight Howard continues to play well for Charlotte. He grabbed his 14th double-double of the season as he finished the game with 21 points and 12 rebounds. He also shot the ball well going 9-14 from the field.

Kemba Walker scored a game-high 23 points in this one. Marvin Williams added 13 points while Johnny O’Bryant had 11 points and seven rebounds to lead the second unit. Michael Carter-Williams and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist each put up nine points.

The Lakers were led by Jordan Clarkson who scored 22 points to go along with six assists and five rebounds off of the bench. Brandon Ingram chipped in 18 points while Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 15 points. Rookie, Kyle Kuzma, put up a double-double with 12 points and 14 boards while fellow rookie Lonzo Ball was held to only five points and nine assists.

Highlight of the Night:

Tweet of the Game:

"Quick Stings"

• Dwight picked up his sixth technical foul of this season in this game.
• LA’s second unit outscored Charlotte’s bench, 53-31.
• This game featured 19 lead changes and nine ties.
• The Lakers out-rebounded the Hornets, 46-43.
• Los Angeles shot 50.6% from the field and scored 56 points in the paint.

With the loss, Charlotte falls to 0-1 against Los Angeles in their season series. The Hornets lost to the Lakers for the first time since 2014 as this loss snapped their five-game win streak versus LA. The two will next meet for a second and final time this season on January 5th.

Next: Kevin Durant praises Kemba Walker

In their next outing, the Hornets will hit the road to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday, December 11th. It will be Charlotte’s first meeting against this new look OKC team with the Big 3 of Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony and Paul George. The Queen City team will look to put an end to their three-game losing streak.