Charlotte Hornets outlast the Dallas Mavericks, 102-98
Dwight Howard and Kemba Walker led the Charlotte Hornets to a win over Dennis Smith Jr. and the Dallas Mavericks.
The Charlotte Hornets (33-41) were able to defeat the Dallas Mavericks (22-51) as they picked up their third consecutive victory. Kemba Walker was the only Hornets’ player to score 20+ points while Dwight Howard grabbed a game-high 23 rebounds. The dynamic duo helped the Queen City team take down the Mavs lost their fourth straight.
Charlotte was a bit shorthanded as they were without Cody Zeller (left knee soreness), Nicolas Batum (left Achilles soreness) and Michael Carter-Williams (left shoulder surgery). Cody missed his eighth straight game while Nic was out for the fourth consecutive outing. Both players are expected to return before the end of the season.
Game Story
This game featured seven lead changes and three ties. Charlotte used a 16-5 run in the second quarter to gain the lead. The Hornets didn’t look back as they held the lead for the remainder of the game. Dallas made it interesting in the closing minutes but clutch shots and free throw down the stretch secured the win for Charlotte. The difference was the Hornets free throw shooting as they made 20 free throws compared to only 14 for the Mavs.
More from Swarm and Sting
- Hornets: Where does Brandon Miller’s ceiling rank among other rookies?
- Charlotte Hornets grade out mostly average in position-by-position ranking
- Hornets News: P.J. Washington makes bold statement on Brandon Miller
- Grade the mock trade: Hornets snag Tyler Herro, flip Gordon Hayward
- Will the Charlotte Hornets be in the 2024 NBA Draft Lottery?
Player of the Game
Dwight Howard fell just short of a 20-20 game as he finished with 18 points and 23 rebounds. 22 of his 23 rebounds came on the defensive end of the floor. The eight-time all-star became the first player in franchise history to record back to back 20+ rebounds games. It was also his seventh game this season with at least 20 boards.
Kemba Walker scored a game-high 24 points to go along with three steals and two assists. Jeremy Lamb added 14 points while Malik Monk led Charlotte’s second unit with 11 points off of the bench. Dwayne Bacon, Frank Kaminsky and Marvin Williams each had nine points in this one.
The Mavericks were led by rookie Dennis Smith Jr. who put up 21 points, six assists and five rebounds. Harrison Barnes chipped in with 18 points and seven boards while Yogi Ferrell had 16 points off of Dallas’ bench. Doug McDermott (14 points), J.J. Barea (10 points) and Nerlens Noel (10 points) rounded out the double-digit scorers.
Highlight of the Night:
Tweet of the Game:
Dwight Howard with a single season hornets record for total rebounds passing Larry Johnson (900)
— Laieke Abebe (@StrikaNation24_) March 25, 2018
"Quick Stings"
- Dwight recorded his 45th double-double of the season.
- Kemba scored 20+ points for the 48th game this year.
- All 10 Hornets’ players who checked into the game, scored.
- Charlotte out-rebounded Dallas, 62-52.
- The Mavs’ bench outscored the Hornets’ second unit, 50-35.
With the win, Charlotte improves to 1-1 on the year against Dallas. The Hornets have now won three of their last four regular-season games versus the Mavericks. This is the second time they’ve tied their season series in the past three campaigns.
Next: Ranking Hornets players by their college careers
In their next game, the Charlotte Hornets will return home to host the New York Knicks on Monday, March 26th. It will be the fourth and final meeting of the season between the two sides. Steve Clifford’s side will be looking to even up the season series at 2-2 and push their win streak to four games.