The Charlotte Hornets nearly overcame a double digit deficit in the fourth quarter but came up just short in a loss to the Miami Heat. Terry Rozier scored 34 points and dished out 13 assists in the loss.
Summary
As has been the case all too often this season, the Hornets found themselves in an early hole, and the reason was one of the usual culprits. The Hornets struggled to get untracked from three while the Heat hit five quick ones. Most of the first quarter was played with the Heat nursing an advantage of a few possessions, and the quarter ended with the Hornets down five.
The Hornets briefly tied the game early in the second after Brandon Miller’s second 3-pointer of the quarter, but the offense went cold after that. It wasn’t just that the Hornets weren’t making shots, they couldn’t even attempt good ones. It took an Ish Smith 3-pointer of all things to break the seal, and then Gordon Hayward asserted himself to keep the Hornets within arm’s reach. They trailed by nine at the break.
Miles Bridges and Terry Rozier took turns splashing threes on one end of the floor, but Jimmy Butler had answers every step of the way. The Hornets actually lost ground despite the hot start to the quarter. They hit another cold spell and watched their deficit grow into double figures. The otherwise uneventful close to the quarter got a jolt when Miles Bridges hit a long stepback jumper at the buzzer, but it only pulled the Hornets within 12 points.
The Hornets scored the first seven points of the fourth quarter to make a game of it again. Brandon Miller had a couple of buckets around the basket and then Rozier dribbled into a three to pull the Hornets within one just five minutes into the fourth. The Hornets desperately tried to get over the hump, but they couldn’t keep Miami off the free throw line–part because of their own doing, part because of misfortune. Caleb Martin got away with a travel and hit a floater to put the Heat up 114-108 with under two minutes to go, and the Hornets couldn’t answer on the other end. After a Jimmy Butler travel that was called, Rozier hit a step back three to pull the Hornets within three. Butler turned the ball over again, the Rozier was fouled and sent to the line with 12 seconds left. After making the first, he missed the second (maybe on purpose) and was called for a lane violation as he ran up to tap in his own miss. The teams exchanged free throws to set the final score and a desperation Rozier heave to end the game had no chance.
The Good
Terry Rozier had another stellar game running the show for the home team. He scored 34 points on 17 shots and tied his career high with 13 assists for the third time in five games. He’s gotten much better at being more decisive with the ball and not over dribbling.
Brandon Miller had a rough start to the game, and I even had him in ‘The Bad’ section of this before the fourth quarter started. But he overcame foul trouble and some early struggles to make some big shots as part of the Hornets comeback attempt in the fourth quarter.
The Hornets as a whole shared the ball very well. They’ve had their fair share of games with stagnant ball movement and disjointed offense. This was not one of those games. They finished with 31 assists on 40 made shots. That’s the ball movement they need to keep up this efficient scoring stretch they’re currently on.
The Bad
Other than PJ Washington, the Hornets bench was completely nonexistent. Ish Smith, Bryce McGowens, and JT Thor combined to score eight points in 47 minutes of court time. McGowens and Ish each had a bucket that felt big in the moment, but they didn’t contribute much over the duration of their minutes. I know they ideally wouldn’t be playing if everyone was healthy, but the Hornets need these guys to step right now. They’re not doing that.
The Hornets struggled to contain the Heat’s penetration. The Heat made 15-of-35 threes, and a lot of that was after swing passes started by drive-and-kicks. The Hornets didn’t rotate well enough in scramble mode, and they were in scramble mode far too often. That also contributed to the amount of free throws the Heat shot.
What’s Next
It was a captivating game between two very evenly matched teams in their current state. Lucky for us, we’ll get to do it again on Wednesday night, this time in Miami.
