South Charlotte Today

The Charlotte Hornets faced the Oklahoma City Thunder at home on Saturday evening, contending with a top-ranked defense. Despite their effort and competitive spirit, the Hornets fell short with a 106-94 loss, marking their seventh consecutive defeat. Missing key players and struggling to score inside contributed to the outcome.

Miles Bridges led Charlotte with 19 points, making all eight of his free throws, along with ten rebounds and six assists. He surpassed Glen Rice for sixth place on the franchise's all-time scoring list. Other starters also scored in double figures, including Vasilije Micić with 16 points and Mark Williams who recorded a season-high ten rebounds.

For Oklahoma City, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 22 points while Jalen Williams added 20. Isaiah Hartenstein achieved a double-double with 12 points and a game-high of 15 rebounds despite early foul trouble.

Charlotte's defense struggled against Oklahoma City's balanced attack. The Thunder finished the first half strongly with a 61-46 lead and maintained control throughout the game.

The Hornets have been plagued by slow starts in recent games, holding only one halftime lead in their last twelve outings. Injuries forced them to rely heavily on available players against Oklahoma City, but they matched the Thunder's bench scoring.

Oklahoma City's defense was effective in limiting Charlotte's paint scoring to just 28 points. However, the Hornets excelled at drawing fouls, converting most of their free throw attempts.

Hornets Head Coach Charles Lee commented on his team's resilience: “There’s no quit in this team and there’s a ton of fight... Nobody’s going to feel sorry for us."

Looking ahead, Charlotte will face the Chicago Bulls on Monday as they aim to break their losing streak against Chicago teams.