Three takeaways from the Knicks 109-97 win over the Hornets
After the shorthanded Charlotte Hornets put together two fantastic offensive quarters of basketball in the first half, the New York Knicks tightened up a defense that has led them to the playoff race.
Charlotte scored 33 points in each of the first two quarters to take a 66-60 lead into the break, but the Hornets scored just 31 second half points after the threes stopped falling in a 109-97 loss.
RJ Barrett’s scoring helped to pace the Knicks in their comeback as the second-year pro had a team-high 24 points. P.J. Washington had a game-high 26 points off the bench for Charlotte to lead the way. The Hornets fell to 28-29 with the loss as the Knicks won their seventh game in a row to jump to 32-27.
Here are three takeaways from a disastrous second half for Charlotte:
When three-point shooting goes away, there isn't enough creation for Charlotte
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We saw just how terribly the Hornets miss LaMelo Ball and Gordon Hayward in the second half. The same threes that went down early for Terry Rozier and P.J. Washington were nowhere to be found in the final two quarters as the Hornets struggled to generate anything easy inside. Hayward and Ball are the two best creators on this roster, and when the long range isn't clicking the Hornets need their middle game and passing to lead the way.
The Hornets need more from Devonte' Graham
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Tonight was a night where Charlotte needed Devonte' Graham's playmaking and scoring in the second half, but in his first game back after missing a pair due to a quad injury, Graham had a tough night. Scoring just 9 points on 10 shots, the fourth quarter where Charlotte needed a comeback was especially quiet from the Kansas product.
Give the Knicks defense a ton of credit
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The second half lockdown effort from New York was no fluke. This is the number one scoring defense in the NBA for a reason. The Knicks did an excellent job at stifling the Hornets drivers as Charlotte settled for contested threes in late shot clock situations.
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