The Charlotte Hornets continued their desperately-needed winning ways against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday, March 14. Concluding their two-game road trip with a second consecutive win, the Hornets will return home sitting just one game below .500 and four games ahead of Washington for the 10th seed.
Against the Thunder, Charlotte was locked and loaded for the final three quarters. The first frame saw the Hornets stumble out of the gate. Trailing by double digits after one, the Swarm took control of the game from there. Outscoring OKC 105-75 the rest of the way, Charlotte dismantled the Thunder on their home floor.
While it was a two-man show for Oklahoma City, Charlotte featured a balanced offensive attack. Every Hornet who played in the game scored, and Terry Rozier led the way with 30 points on 17 shots.
Miles Bridges and LaMelo Ball contributed 27 and 21 points, respectively, and the duo combined to shoot 10-14 from three-point land. Coupled with Rozier’s four triples and Isaiah Thomas’ four triples, the Hornets were certainly feeling it from distance. As a team, Charlotte connected on 20-35 of their three-point attempts.
Strangely, the frontcourt failed to dominate against the likes of Darius Bazley and Olivier Sarr. P.J. Washington, Mason Plumlee, and Montrezl Harrell combined for 16 points on the evening. Scoring 32 points, Bazley and Sarr doubled the trio of Hornets bigs.
The Swarm covered all three odds in this one. Covering the moneyline, over/under, and the point spread, Charlotte could not do anything wrong on Monday evening.
Next up, the Swarm will return home to face the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday, March 16, in the first of five consecutive home tilts. In a game that could determine playoff seeding and home court advantage in the play-in tournament, this one will be a must-win for the Hornets.