The Charlotte Hornets delivered another strong performance Friday night at the Spectrum Center, dismantling the Indiana Pacers 129-108 for their eighth victory in the last 10 games and third straight win overall.
The Hornets improved to 42-36 while the Pacers fell to 18-59. Brandon Miller led the way with a game-high 22 points for Charlotte. Kon Knueppel added 20 points, including a flashy coast-to-coast layup that showcased his growing versatility. Miles Bridges chipped in 19, and LaMelo Ball posted 18 points with nine assists and five made threes.
The Hornets’ offense was unstoppable from deep, finishing 24-of-49 from three-point range. They built an insurmountable lead early, racing to a 31-11 advantage in the first quarter behind a barrage of long-range bombs. By halftime it was 69-50 after Charlotte drained 14-of-27 threes in the opening 24 minutes.
The Pacers never mounted a serious comeback; Charlotte’s biggest lead swelled to 27 points. Pascal Siakam paced Indiana with 30 points in a losing effort. Quenton Jackson added 16, but the visitors struggled to keep pace with Charlotte’s perimeter barrage and transition game. The Pacers shot just 15-of-36 from three and committed 11 turnovers that the Hornets converted into 43 points off turnovers. The game was never in doubt after the opening flurry.
Charlotte now sits in eighth place in the Eastern Conference, just 1.5 games behind Philadelphia and Toronto for a top-six seed and guaranteed playoff spot. With games remaining against Minnesota on Sunday and a favorable remaining schedule, the Hornets are continuing to surge at the perfect time.
Rick Carlisle sung the Hornets praises postgame. “We know that every time we play them, we’re playing one of the highest-level teams in the East.”
These last several games are massively important for Charlotte to at minimum try to stay the eight seed so they have multiple opportunities to get into the playoffs,or if the right things happen, maybe they can skip the play-in tournament all together.