The Hornets host the defending champs on second night of a back-to-back

The NBA schedule doesn't favor the Hornets in tonight's matchup in the slightest, as they're coming off an overtime loss to Milwaukee last night in which they gave everything they had. Now, in less than 24 hours, they have to host the defending champs in the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Although the Hornets came up short against Milwaukee, there was a major bright spot in the game that should leave Hornets fans with a smile.

That bright spot was Kon Knueppel, who recorded yet another career-high in points, this time 32 points, in his hometown of Milwaukee in front of his family.

The Hornets' rookie continues to impress this season, as he's now averaging 17.9 points per game on the season. On top of that, the 20-year-old has accumulated four 20+ point performances in his last six games.

Something else to watch for in tonight's contest will be Tre Mann, who will have an extended run with LaMelo Ball missing the second night of a back-to-back. Mann had a rough overtime in Friday's loss, but he should rebound versus a team he's quite familiar with, his former team in the Thunder.

Looking at the Oklahoma City Thunder, they currently sit comfortably in first in the Western Conference with a 12-1 record. Their last game might have been their best of the season, as it resulted in a complete blowout win versus the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday night.

To make matters worse for Charlotte, the Thunder's last game was on Wednesday, which makes an already dominant team even better with much more rest.

If there are two aspects to the Thunder that have been notable trends, it's been the continued dominance of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the play of Ajay Mitchell, who's had quite the sophomore breakout season. Both players will be difficult to match up against in Saturday's contest.

Key Matchup: The Bench

The Hornets' bench has been quite depleted this season, with most of their bench players having to start due to their best players missing time with injuries.

That case will stay the same tonight, but they'll have to be on their toes even more versus a Thunder team who have a bench that can score loads of points.

Three players stand out from OKC's bench. Alex Caruso, Ajay Mitchell, and Isaiah Joe have been what keep the Thunder so consistently good each and every night.

If the Hornets want any chance of hanging on in this game or putting up a respectable fight, they'll need their bench players to match the Thunder's bench in points.

INJURY REPORT:

Hornets: PROBABLE - KJ Simpson (L AC Joint Sprain), OUT - Brandon Miller (L Shoulder), Liam McNeeley (Illness), LaMelo Ball (R Ankle), Grant Williams (R Knee), Josh Green (L Shoulder)

Thunder: QUESTIONABLE - Lu Dort (R Trap Strain), OUT - Aaron Wiggins (L Adductor), Nikola Topic (Surgical Recovery), Jalen Williams (R Wrist), Thomas Sorber (R ACL), Kenrich Williams (R Knee)

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP

POSITION	CHARLOTTE HORNETS	Oklahoma City Thunder
PG	Collin Sexton	Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
SG	Sion James	Cason Wallace
SF	Kon Knueppel	Lu Dort
PF	Miles Bridges	Chet Holmgren
C	Ryan Kalkbrenner	Isaiah Hartenstein

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