The Charlotte Hornets return to action tonight with a road contest against the New York Knicks. The Hornets have been playing well as of late, having gone 9-4 in the month of March. Meanwhile, the Knicks have been playing better lately and have won four straight games, beginning with a win over the Hornets last week.
Keys to the Game
Limit Three Pointers
The Knicks were able to ride their three-point shooting to a win over the Hornets the last time these teams met. New York made 20 three pointers in that game, tied for their second-most in any game this season. The Knicks rode their hot shooting to a 16-point lead after the first quarter and were able to control the game from that point on. The Knicks are capable of repeating their performance from deep, as they shoot the 11th-most threes in the NBA and convert their threes at the 12th-best percentage. However, they are the fourth-lowest scoring team and they average the least made field goals per game of any team. If Charlotte can neutralize New York’s three-point shooting, it could be a long night for the Knicks on the offensive end of the court.
Create Turnovers
The Knicks racked up 30 assists against the Hornets last week, marking their third-highest team assist total of the season. New York does not share the ball on offense, as they average the least assists per game in the league. The Knicks recorded just 17 assists in their first matchup with Charlotte and 22 in the second matchup as the Hornets won both games. Nearly 43% of New York’s made field goals are unassisted, the fourth-highest mark in the league.
Another factor will be Julius Randle’s availability. Randle has played in the last two games after missing three games including last week’s matchup in Charlotte. Randle has the highest usage rate of any Knicks player and has also committed the most turnovers of any Knicks player. New York had only seven turnovers against Charlotte last week, tied for their second-fewest in a game this season. Their highest turnover performance was also against the Hornets, as they committed 19 turnovers in the first matchup with Charlotte. The Hornets are third in the NBA in percentage of point scored off turnovers at 16.4%, so creating turnovers will be a key to getting the win in this matchup.
Odds and Moneyline provided by FanDuel
Point Spread: Hornets -1
Money line: Hornets -118 / Knicks +100
Over-Under: 223
Final Prediction
The Knicks have been playing better as of late as they make one final push for a play-in spot. The Hornets have also been playing well and should have revenge on their mind after last week’s home loss to the Knicks. Charlotte makes a concerted effort to take away the three-pointers for New York, and the Hornets cover and get the win in a low-scoring game that combines to hit the under on the point total.