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Hornets can't contain Coby White, lose to Bulls

Chicago got the 131-117 win on sunday afternoon
Albert Bottcher|
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Charlotte Hornets

It was the kind of game one can expect when two of the NBA's worst defenses meet. With most of the Hornets' primary offensive weapons sitting this one out, the Bulls took more advantage of the lack of defense being played.

Charlotte put up a fight in the first, behind solid shooting from deep and nine points by Jusuf Nurkic off the bench. Despite a good field goal percentage of 50% for the Hornets, the Bulls led 29-28 after ten as they converted on 57% of their shots.

Things really took a turn for the worse as halftime approached. Coby White, who had only scored two measly points in the first quarter, caught fire. The former Tar Heel put up 18 points in the second, including a three that beat the halftime buzzer and brought the Bulls lead up to 75-55.

There wasn't much doing in the second half, either. Every time a slight momentum shift seemed to be imminent, Chicago made a big play through Coby White or Josh Giddey and pulled away some more. That didn't stop Charles Lee's squad from hustling until the final buzzer, although with limited success.

Best of the night: The Big Men's scoring

Nikola Vucevic and Zach Collins make up one of the league's worst defensive center rotations, and the Hornets exposed that weak spot all night long. Mark Williams (22pts), Jusuf Nurkic (18pts), and Moussa Diabate (8pts) all had their way inside, and Charlotte actually outscored Chicago in the paint (64-60).

Worst of the night: Attention to detail on transition defense

The Bulls are a team that can get hot quickly, so preventing them from doing so is key. The Hornets did not do a good job at that for the most part, losing track of shooters in transition way too often. Chicago scored 26 fastbreak points to Charlotte's five.

Highlight of the night: Seth Curry shakes Kevin Huerter and finishes through contract

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Albert Bottcher
ALBERT BOTTCHER

Albert Böttcher is a basketball enthusiast from Germany who has been covering the Hornets for On SI since February of 2024. He's contributed to draft and game day coverage, but also writes in-depth pieces on multiple Hornets-related topics. He also works for the media department of the German basketball club Alba Berlin.

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