Hornets Hold Off T-Wolves
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CHARLOTTE, N.C. - The newly minted 'CLT' uniforms brought some good luck to the Hornets as they defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves 110-108 in front of an energetic Black Friday crowd.
Minnesota's size affected the Hornets from the outset with six shots being denied at the rim in just the first half alone. Kyle Anderson, of all people, had half of those blocks. The bigger issue for Charlotte was the inability to create second chance opportunities, which is something the Timberwolves have struggled with all season long allowing over 12 offensive boards per game. Credit Rudy Gobert for that as he pulled down 10 defensive rebounds in the first half to go along with one blocked shot.
With no LaMelo Ball (ankle) or Gordon Hayward (shoulder), the Hornets really needed Terry Rozier to carry the load offensively, but he struggled knocking down just 3-of-11 shots through the first 24 minutes. Instead, it was Kelly Oubre Jr. that led all scorers at the break with 17 points, but Minnesota had the advantage, 62-52.
The game turned toward the end of the third quarter when the Hornets strung together several stops and turned it into points on the other end. A 16-6 run to close out the quarter gave Charlotte a 91-83 lead. A backcourt combination of Theo Maledon and James Bouknight ignited the turnaround as the two combined for 14 points in the quarter, nine of which came from the three ball.
Just as the Hornets were about to pull away, D'Angelo Russell and Rudy Gobert had other plans. The two helped piece together an 11-0 run to make it just a one-point game, 103-102. Charlotte was able to knock some free throws down in the final minutes of the game to provide them enough cushion for the win. The Hornets were 7/13 from the charity stripe in the first half and were 15/19 in the second half.
The Hornets will be back in action Monday night in Boston against the Celtics. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. EST.
TEAM STATS (ACCUMULATIVE)
1ST
MIN: 12/23 FG | 3/8 3FG | 15 REB | 6 AST | 6 TOs | 12 PIP
CHA: 12/24 FG | 2/6 3FG | 7 REB | 8 AST | 1 TOs | 20 PIP
2ND
MIN: 22/46 FG | 5/17 3FG | 27 REB | 11 AST | 8 TOs | 28 PIP
CHA: 21/47 FG | 3/12 3FG | 21 REB | 14 AST | 6 TOs | 34 PIP
3RD
MIN: 30/68 FG | 8/29 3FG | 34 REB | 18 AST | 14 TOs | 38 PIP
CHA: 34/70 FG | 7/20 3FG | 38 REB | 20 AST | 10 TOs | 52 PIP
4TH
MIN: 41/96 FG | 9/41 3FG | 45 REB | 23 AST | 16 TOs | 54 PIP
CHA: 40/89 FG | 8/25 3FG | 55 REB | 24 AST | 18 TOs | 60 PIP
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