The Charlotte Hornets began a three game road trip Wednesday in San Antonio.
It was the first game for the team since losing Bismack Biyombo and Marvin Williams to injury, as well as the first game since Kemba Walker decided to have knee surgery, sidelining him for at least 6 weeks.
The Spurs opened up a sizable lead in the first half–at one point up by 17–but the Hornets chipped away at the deficit in the third quarter. They held the Spurs to just 14 points in the period while scoring 26. The Spurs pulled away for the final time in the fourth behind their three-point shooting, and never looked back.
The Hornets’ inability to score efficiently was prominently on display: as a team, they shot 41%, and 33.3% from behind the three-point line. Al Jefferson had a solid game in what was his first in the starting lineup since missing 9 games due to a groin strain; he finished with 17 points on 8 of 12 shooting. Brian Roberts, who is starting in place of Kemba Walker, struggled to shoot the ball as he finished with 8 points on 3 of 11 shooting (2 of 7 from deep). He did, however, dish out six assists with zero turnovers and three steals, a respectable performance from the backup point guard. Unfortunately, the absence of scoring from the point was apparent. Gerald Henderson finished with 18 points on 6 of 17 shooting, and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had 14 on 7 of 13 shooting. Cody Zeller, while not shooting well (nine points on 3 of 7 shooting) had a well rounded game, finishing with 13 rebounds and seven assists.
The Hornets played well defensively, holding the Spurs six points under their season average of 101.4, but found themselves in the familiar territory of not being able to score on their own end. Gary Neal’s recent struggles continued, with 12 points on 4 of 10 shooting, and Lance Stephenson was held without a point or field-goal on 5 attempts.
The Hornets face the Denver Nuggets at the Pepsi Center on Saturday at 9 PM EST. Look for the Hornets to do their best to contain Ty Lawson and ward off the offensive rebounds of Denver’s front-line.
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