Charlotte Hornets look to sweep season series against Memphis Grizzlies

Coming off one of the worst losses of the season, can the Charlotte Hornets start off a home stand with a win over the Memphis Grizzlies?

After the beatdown the Charlotte Hornets (24-26) suffered on Wednesday night in Boston, you have to assume they’re eager to get back to the familiar confines of the Queen City. They’ll be there for the next three games and at least two of those games are winnable, though sometimes we don’t exactly get the Hornets team we think we will.

Still, this brief home stand should prove beneficial for the guys in purple and teal and if they can win all three, then they’re back above .500 before going on a four-game road stretch.

Their next opponent is the Memphis Grizzlies (20-32). The same Grizzlies they defeated on the road back on January 23rd. Charlotte led most of the game and left Memphis with a 118-107 win. The Hornets shot over 53% from the field and held the Grizzlies to just 29% from behind the arc.

The Hornets’ last game was a 94-126 road loss to the Boston Celtics. They are 8th in the Eastern Conference. Memphis’ last game was a 97-99 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. They are 14th in the West. This is the second and final game in which these two teams will face off.

Charlotte Hornets vs Memphis Grizzlies
7:00 p.m. EST, Friday, February 1st, 2019
Spectrum Center
Fox Sports Southeast

Injury Report:

CHA:

Cody Zeller – Hand (Out)

Tony Parker – Ankle (Probable)

MEM:

Garrett Temple – Shoulder (Doubtful)

Dillon Brooks – Toe (Out)

Jaren Jackson Jr. – Quadriceps (Questionable)

Mike Conley – Knee (Questionable)

Omri Casspi – Knee (Out)

Things to watch for:

Injuries continue to plague the Grizzlies, but several of those guys could end up playing. The Hornets have a few banged up players as well, but Cody should be back pretty soon and if Tony can’t play, expect more Devonte’ Graham.

Over the last seven games, Kemba Walker has been shooting just 31% from deep. Here’s hoping that improves against a team that allows its opponents to shoot 36% from three, which ties them for the 7th highest in the league.

Keys to the game:

Although they won by 11, it was actually much closer than that in their last game against Memphis. The only real time when they had a lead by more than a few points was the third quarter where they outscored the Grizzlies 28-22.

The Hornets would do well to try and put them away as fast as possible and keep their foot on the gas. With a team that ranks dead last in scoring, it would be wise to assert your dominance in your home arena.

If Mike Conley does play, you can’t allow him to score 31 points on you as he did last game. A good chunk of that came at the free-throw line, where he went 9-9. They will also have to neutralize Marc Gasol as he and Conley combined for 53 points.

The Hornets have swept the season series against the Grizzlies two out of the last three years. Can they make three of four? We’ll find out Friday night in the Spectrum Center.