By Sam Perley, hornets.com
Result Despite the much-anticipated return of top-defender Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, the Charlotte Hornets couldn’t finish off a late comeback against the hometown Trail Blazers, falling 109-91, on Friday, Jan. 29, in Portland. The Hornets held a 25-21 lead after the first but ultimately had their fate sealed soon after as the Trail Blazers outscored them by 18 points combined over the course of the middle two quarters to help put the game out of reach. Marvin Williams finished just off his season high with a team-high 20 points for the Hornets while Damian Lillard knocked down a game-high 22 points in the Trail Blazers’ win.
Turning Points Portland started to break away in the second quarter, using a 12-0 stretch early in the frame to turn a six-point deficit into a 33-27 lead with 8:27 remaining before halftime. Although Charlotte trimmed the Trail Blazers’ lead to five at the break, Portland pulled away again near the end of the third quarter, using a 14-5 run to build a 83-69 advantage heading into the fourth. The Hornets fell behind by as many as 20 in the final quarter before cutting the Trail Blazers’ lead down to nine with 3:26 remaining but couldn’t finish off the comeback as they lost their eighth-consecutive game in Portland.
Inside the Box Score Marvin Williams led the Hornets with 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting (4-of-7 from three-point range) along with nine rebounds… Brain Roberts scored a season high for the second-consecutive game, finishing with 17 points and two rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench… Kemba Walker tallied 14 points, three rebounds, four assists and a game-high four steals… Michael Kidd-Gilchrist chipped in 13 points and seven rebounds in his first game of the season… Tyler Hansbrough added a season-high 12 points and a game-high and career-high-tying 14 rebounds in 23 minutes off the bench… Nicolas Batum dished out a game-high eight assists against his former team… Damian Lillard paved the way for the Trail Blazers with a game-high 22 points, five rebounds and team highs in both assists (six) and steals (three)… Allen Crabbe posted 20 points and three rebounds off the bench… Al-Farouq Aminu and C.J. McCollum each finished with 17 points. Aminu also grabbed a team-high-tying 12 rebounds for his seventh double-double of the season… Mason Plumlee also notched a double-double, finishing with 13 points, a team-high-tying 12 rebounds, five assists, two steals and two blocks… Portland outscored Charlotte in the paint, 50-30… The Hornets had 16 total turnovers leading to 21 Trail Blazer points while Portland turned the ball over 11 total times which led to 13 points for Charlotte.
Hornets Player of the Game Tyler Hansbrough put together a dominant performance, finishing with a season-high 12 points, a career-high-tying 14 rebounds and two steals in 23 minutes off the Hornets’ bench. Hansbrough, who also drained a season-high 8-of-10 free-throw attempts, notched his first double-double since Apr. 8, 2015 when he was a member of the Toronto Raptors.
Trail Blazers Player of the Game Mason Plumlee finished with 13 points, a team-high-tying 12 rebounds, five assists, two steals and a game-high two blocks in the Portland win. This is Plumlee’s 13th double-double of the season, which is the most he’s ever had in a single season during his three-year NBA career.
Game Notes Jeremy Lamb (toe) and Cody Zeller (shoulder) remained sidelined for the Hornets… P.J. Hairston left the game in the fourth quarter and did not return (elbow)… Charlotte has not won a game in Portland since Mar. 29, 2008.
Next Up The Hornets finish off their four-game road trip against the Lakers at 9:30 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 31 in Los Angeles. This game can be seen on FOX Sports Southeast or heard on WFNZ or on the official Charlotte Hornets mobile app.
