Charlotte Hornets: Looking at the three-most impressive wins of the season
This was a win at home, but it was meaningful due to the fact that the Rockets had beaten the Hornets six-straight times before this game.
March 7th, 2020, just a few days before the NBA season was put on hold. The Houston Rockets, with only half of their pair of former MVPs, came into town looking to take care of business as usual. I mean, why not? The Rockets had dominated the Charlotte Hornets for three straight years up until this game and with Charlotte riding a three-game losing streak to that point, that looked to continue.
Houston was coming into this game with a 39-23 record and sporting a win over the Hornets already. Just a few weeks earlier, the Rockets defeated Charlotte in Houston to the tune of 125-110. Obviously, with a loss here, this would have been four straight years of losing to the Rockets.
That victory was emblematic of Houston’s dominance over Charlotte over the past handful of seasons. Over that three-year span, the Hornets had managed to lose to the Rockets by single-digits just once. Granted, the two teams play just twice a year, but like so many Western Conference teams, the Rockets had the Hornets’ number.
That would change this night, however, as the Hornets would handle the Russell Westerbook-less Rockets from the get-go. Charlotte held Houston to just 17 points in the first quarter while managing to score 30 themselves.
Deni Avdija could be a versatile, do-it-all forward for the Charlotte Hornets. light. More
The Hornets went into the half with a lead of 57-43. Things got a little closer, though, as the Hornets would start to let the Rockets back in it. Houston would outscore Charlotte, 66-51 in the second half.
Obviously, the Hornets held on to win, defeating Houston 108-99 at home, snapping a seven-game losing streak to James Harden and the Rockets. Despite notching yet another triple-double, the Hornets were able to keep “The Beard” in check, holding him to just 8-22 shooting and 2-11 from behind the arc. He, of course, did considerable damage at the free-throw line, but ultimately, finished -9 in +/-.
As a team, the Hornets played very well, with all five starters scoring in double-digits, including three players scoring 20 or more. Terry Rozier was the high scorer for Charlotte, with 24 points.
We still have two more games to cover and they were fun ones, to be sure. Join us as we fly north of the border to take on the defending World Champions.