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A pair of Southeast Division rivals close out a home-and-home set on the pro hardwood as they tangle in search of a win down in South Beach. The Charlotte Hornets are on the road as they make the trip to face the Miami Heat Wednesday night. These teams met in Charlotte on Monday night with the Heat escaping with a 116-114 road victory though the Hornets covered the line as a 4.5-point underdog. In the all-time regular season series between the teams, the Heat own a 75-48 advantage and have taken the first two meetings this season after Monday’s triumph. Will Miami make it three straight over Charlotte or can the Hornets put one in the win column?
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Charlotte battled to the end but came up a bucket short on their home floor against the Heat in the front half of this home-and-home series that closes here. The Hornets entered Tuesday 7-14 on the season and stood fourth in the Southeast Division, eight games behind the Magic for the top spot. They were 13th in the Eastern Conference, 5.5 games behind the Knicks for the final guaranteed spot in the East and 1.5 games behind the Hawks for the final spot in the play-in tournament field. Against Miami, Charlotte trailed by five after the opening quarter, by nine at the half and by 12 after three quarters before rallying. The Hornets got within one on a few occasions in the final stanza, the last with nine seconds to play, but couldn’t take the lead. Charlotte shot 47.6% from the field, including 17 of 41 from three-point range, but lost the rebounding battle 43-31 in the contest. Terry Rozier led the Hornets with 34 points a nd 13 assists in the loss.
On the season, the Hornets are 17th in the league in scoring offense with 113.4 points per game. Charlotte is 23rd in the league in rebounding as they collect 42.7 boards per contest and 12th in assists with 26 dimes per contest. The Hornets are 26th in scoring defense as they allow an average of 121 points per game. Terry Rozier is second on the Hornets in scoring with 23.6 points plus 3.5 rebounds and 7.7 assists per game this season. Gordon Hayward (15.3 points, five boards, 4.7 assists), LaMelo Ball (24.7 points, 5.5 rebounds, 8.2 assists), Miles Bridges (20 points, 6.9 rebounds), P.J. Washington (14 points) and Brandon Miller (14.6 points, 4.2 rebounds) are solid contributors on the offensive end of the floor. Mark Williams (12.7 points, 9.7 rebounds), Theo Maledon, JT Thor and Nick Richards are looked at to provide rotational depth for the Hornets. Charlotte is 12th in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 47.5% from the field as a team. The Hornets are 23rd in threes per game with 11.7 per contest and 9th in three-point field goal percentage by shooting 37.4% from beyond the arc.
Cody Martin (knee) played just seven games last season and has been off the floor since January 14. He remains out with no timetable for return. Frank Ntilkina (leg) is out until late December after breaking his leg in preseason. Ball (ankle) last played on November 26 against the Magic and is expected to be out until late December. Nick Smith Jr. (ankle) has missed the last two games while Williams (back) missed Monday’s game. Both are considered questionable for this contest so watch for updates.