South Charlotte Today

The Charlotte Hornets are currently experiencing a difficult phase in their shooting performance, which contributed to their 114-101 loss against the Houston Rockets on Monday night. This home defeat highlighted the Hornets' ongoing struggle with three-point shots.

LaMelo Ball was a standout performer for Charlotte, scoring 23 points, including 13 in the third quarter, and contributing five rebounds and eight assists without any turnovers. Moussa Diabaté also impressed with a career-high 14 points on perfect shooting from the field.

For the Rockets, Jabari Smith Jr., Fred VanVleet, and Amen Thompson each scored at least 19 points on 50% shooting. Smith and Thompson both recorded double-doubles with 11 rebounds each.

Houston took control early by dominating in the paint and rebounding during the first quarter, establishing a strong lead that they extended by halftime. The Hornets faced their largest halftime deficit of the season after scoring only 31 points in the first half.

The Hornets have been struggling with slow starts recently, trailing at halftime in nine of their last ten games. Their three-point shooting has been particularly problematic, hitting just 24.7% over their last five games compared to 36.4% earlier in the season.

Houston demonstrated its strength as a top team in offensive and total rebounding percentages. They won the rebounding battle significantly against Charlotte, led by players like Smith, Thompson, Alperen Şengün, and Steven Adams.

Hornets Head Coach Charles Lee commented postgame: “Tonight was one of those nights where it’s not about shooting, it’s not about offense. It’s about trying to impact winning... I just feel like that first half wasn’t really a depiction of who we are and who we say we want to be.”

Looking ahead, Charlotte will play against Washington Wizards on Thursday after losing to them last week.