Charlotte Hornets look to win second straight over the Washington Wizards

After a satisfying win on Friday night against the Brooklyn Nets, the Charlotte Hornets look to win their second straight on Saturday night against the Washington Wizards.

The Charlotte Hornets were able to come back from their loss on Wednesday night and beat the Brooklyn Nets in Charlotte; winning in revenge fashion. The Hornets won this game with a score of 100-87 over the Nets.

This game featured a magnificent performance by Kemba Walker who scored twenty-nine points (seven triples), and a highly efficient Jeremy Lamb (nineteen points). Tony Parker also went off in this game by scoring nineteen points (seventeen in the fourth quarter).

Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer, also stated that Tony Parker would not be playing in the game against the Washington Wizards on Saturday night. Parker will be resting, so that means that Hornets fans will get the chance to see more playing time from Devonte’ Graham.

The Charlotte Hornets are currently in sixth place in the Eastern Conference (17-17), and they look to get to one game over .500 again with a win over the Wizards. Can the Hornets pull off another win on a night of a back-to-back?

Charlotte Hornets at Washington Wizards
7:00 p.m. EST, Saturday, December 29th, 2018
Capital One Arena
Fox Sports Southeast

Injury Report:

CHA:

Tony Parker – Rest (Out)

WAS:

Otto Porter Jr. – Knee (Questionable)

John Wall – Left Heel (Game-Time Decision)

Markieff Morris – Neck (Game-Time Decision)

Dwight Howard – Back (Out)

Things to watch for:

The Wizards may be without a few starters in the game against the Hornets. With John Wall not playing in the Wizards’ loss to the Chicago Bulls, it is questionable that he will actually play against Charlotte.

The final injury report before the game will be something important to watch for, as most of these injuries will be updated closer to the start of the game. Thankfully, the Hornets only have one person not playing, and that is because Tony Parker wants to rest his body after his throwback performance in the fourth quarter against the Nets.

Thomas Bryant, who will be starting, has been averaging 14.6 points and seven rebounds per game in his last five games. Bryant also recently had a game, in which he scored thirty-one points on 100% shooting from the field.

Keys to the game:

In order for the Hornets to win this game, they must find a way to limit the scoring of Bradley Beal. Beal, who has been a part of a lot of trade speculation, has been averaging 26.6 points, 6.6 assists, and 5.8 rebounds per game in his previous five games.

The Hornets cannot afford to let Beal go off and have a career night against them. It will be up to Coach James Borrego, to construct a rotation that can effectively guard Beal when he is on the court.

The Hornets must find a way to take advantage of the matchup presented before Kemba Walker if John Wall does not play. If the Hornets are to win this game, Walker must play well.

I am a firm believer in a team’s desire to rebound the basketball. With that being said, I believe that the team who wins the rebounding statistical category at the end of the night will be the team who comes out victorious.

Both Cody Zeller and Marvin Williams are coming off of a good rebounding night against the Brooklyn Nets. Their consistent rebounding must carry over to Saturday night, and they must make sure to secure the glass.

The Hornets have had a terrible road record this season; winning only four of their fourteen road games. This road game is a must-win for the team. The team must find a way to win while playing on the road.