The San Antonio Spurs came up short to the blossoming Hornets in the matinee game in Charlotte. It was all gas and no brakes early as the Spurs countered the rebounding, pace and LaMelo Ball’s flurry with six 3-pointers, eight fast break points plus the bench added a cushion. They also got some help from Charlotte’s six turnovers, ending the first quarter ahead by four points.
The 3-point shooting came to a crashing halt, missing all seven attempts, while the hosts ran lots of motion. Collin Sexton was their next man to erupt, scoring 10 points in the second quarter, and then Brandon Miller turned into a supernova, pouring in 16, pushing them to a 14-point lead after it was tied with three minutes left in the half.
The Spurs subsequently came out of intermission with little to offer against Charlotte’s paint pressure. They also couldn’t cut the deficit closer than nine points going into the fourth quarter because their turnovers turned into points for the other side. The poor 3-point defense that followed, in combination with getting beat on second attempts, had them looking in bad shape on the ropes until Stephon Castle’s late scoring inspired the team, and they cut the deficit to two, forcing the Hornets to call timeout with five minutes left.
They followed up getting beat to the inside thrice, missed four critical shots and committed the cardinal sin of fouling Miles Bridges on a 3-point attempt. It was curtains after that.