Hornets vs. Sixers Recap: The good, the bad and the LaMelo Ball (Feb. 3)
Another impressive comeback from the Hornets on Wednesday fell short as the Sixers survived the late rally to earn a 118-111 win.
Trailing by as many as 26 late in the second quarter, Charlotte used big runs in the third and fourth quarters to make the second half an interesting one. A 27-9 run in the third quarter, particularly, cut the deficit to single digits and though Philly responded to push the lead back to double digits, the Hornets stayed within shouting distance the remainder of the game.
However, the hole was too big to climb out of, even if a spurt in the final seconds nearly gave Charlotte a chance.
LaMelo Ball and Gordon Hayward each had 22 points while Devonte’ Graham and Miles Bridges had 18 and 16, respectively. Malik Monk had 13 off the bench.
The Good: Third quarter
Looking dead in the water for much of the first half, the Hornets mounted an impressive comeback in the third quarter that got them back in the contest. After falling behind 72-47, a 27-9 run cut the deficit all the way down to seven points. Multiple players pitched in with Hayward, Ball, Graham, Cody Zeller, Caleb Martin, and Monk all scoring during that stretch. But even for a team as resilient as the Hornets, the 26-point first-half deficit was too much to crawl out of. Honorable mentions: Joel Embiid, Miles Bridges' dunks
The Bad: The bigs vs. Joel Embiid
It is no easy task going up against Embiid, who is playing at an MVP level this season. But the Hornets offered no resistance for Embiid for much of the night. The Sixer big man finished with 34 points, 11 rebounds, two blocks, two steals and a block. He feasted in the first half on the Hornets starters and Charlotte, down P.J. Washington, could offer little resistance to him. Only a zone employed by the Hornets late in the fourth slowed him but the big man still had a big hand in icing the game away late.
The LaMelo Ball: A spark even as a starter
In his second start in as many games, Ball looked even more comfortable on Wednesday. Playing a season-high 38 minutes, Ball finished with 22 points on 8-of-16 shooting overall and 3-of-6 shooting from 3-point range while adding seven rebounds, three assists and two steals, though he also had six turnovers in the loss. Ball shot Still, it was Ball that made the game interesting late. The Sixers looked content to run out the clock late after a Monk three cut the Philly lead to eight with 18 seconds left. Ball, though, was not and swiped the ball away from Embiid before knocking down a pull-up 3-pointer. After a pair of Embiid free throws, Graham was fouled on a three with 5.1 seconds left. He would knock down the first two before attempting to intentionally miss the third but Graham would not hit the rim, giving the ball back to Philly who did ice the game away this time.
