By Sam Perley, hornets.com
Result Looking to stun the Wizards in the fourth quarter for the second time this season, the Hornets couldn’t finish off their late rally, as they fell 109-101, on Saturday, Dec. 19, in Washington, D.C. Similarly to their game in Orlando earlier in the week, the Hornets were once again done in by perimeter defense and turnovers, allowing Washington to shoot 50.6 percent from the field (45.0 percent from three-point range) and score 30 points off 18 total Charlotte giveaways. Kemba Walker led the Hornets in scoring with a team-high 18 points while John Wall tallied 27 points for Washington in the win.
Turning Points Trailing by 15 points with just under 10 minutes remaining in the game, Charlotte rolled off a 14-2 run to cut Washington’s lead to 95-92 by the 4:09 mark of the fourth quarter. A few minutes later, a Cody Zeller layup trimmed the Wizards’ lead to 99-98 but that would be as close as Charlotte would get as Washington locked down on defense and ended the game on a 10-3 win to seal the victory. This was the Hornets’ first loss of the season when scoring 100-or-more points after winning their previous 12 such games.
Inside the Box Score Kemba Walker tallied a team-high 18 points along with three rebounds, two assists and three steals… Jeremy Lin had a strong outing off the bench, finishing with 15 points, six rebounds and a season-high seven assists… Nicolas Batum returned from a one-game absence to tack on 14 points, six rebounds, a team-high eight assists and three steals… Cody Zeller chipped in 11 points and seven rebounds… P.J. Hairston scored in double figures for the third-consecutive game, tallying 10 points, six rebounds and two assists. Hairston has also now knocked down two-or-more three-pointers in four-consecutive games…Marvin Williams just missed his second-straight double-double, finishing with nine points and a team-high nine rebounds (six offensive)… John Wall led the Wizards in both points (27) and assists (12) to finish with the double-double… Garrett Temple finished with a career-high 21 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals… Jared Dudley tallied a season-high-tying 19 points and a season-high and team-high nine rebounds… Marcin Gortat also scored in double figures with 18 points, six rebounds and a team-high two blocks… Charlotte connected on 10-of-33 attempts from long distance (30.3 percent) while Washington was 9-of-20 from behind the arc. This is the Hornets’ 14th game this season with 10-or-more made three-pointers, which is the fourth-highest total of any team in the NBA… Charlotte’s bench outscored Washington’s, 39-16… The Hornets dominated the Wizards on the boards, 51-38, including an 18-5 advantage in offensive rebounds.
Hornets Player of the Game Jeremy Lin had another fantastic outing for the Hornets, finishing with 15 points on 6-of-13 shooting (2-of-2 from three-point range), six rebounds and a season-high seven assists off the bench. Over his last five games, Lin is now averaging 17.6 points on 48.4 percent shooting along with 4.4 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.4 blocks for the Hornets.
Wizards Player of the Game John Wall lead the way for the Wizards with a game-high 27 points on 10-of-21 shooting, four rebounds, a game-high 12 assists and team-high three steals in 42 minutes of play. Wall has now recorded 12 double-doubles on the season, eight of which have come in the month of December.
Game Notes P.J. Hairston left the game in the third quarter (calf) but did return… Bradley Beal (leg), Otto Porter (thigh), Nene (calf) and Drew Gooden (calf) were all sidelined for Washington… John Wall received a technical foul in the second quarter… Charlotte has attempted 25-or-more three-pointers in 15-straight games, which is the second-longest active streak in the NBA (Golden State- 19)
