National Basketball Association
Charlotte 142, New Orleans 120
When: 8:00 PM ET, Friday, March 11, 2022
Where: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
Officials: #43 Matt Myers, #46 Ben Taylor, #27 Mitchell Ervin
Attendance: 16838

Miles Bridges scored 26 points to lead seven Charlotte scorers in double figures as the hot-shooting Hornets defeated the host New Orleans Pelicans 142-120 on Friday night.

Terry Rozier added 25 points, LaMelo Ball 17, Montrezl Harrell 16, Cody Martin 15, Isaiah Thomas 14 and Kelly Oubre Jr. 10 for the Hornets, who shot 59.8 percent from the floor, including 46.8 percent on 3-pointers. They had 41 assists on 52 field goals.

Charlotte had won just three of its previous 10 games but took command by outscoring New Orleans 42-27 in the third quarter.

For New Orleans, rookie Trey Murphy III had season highs of 32 points (making seven 3-pointers) and nine rebounds, Devonte' Graham scored 19 points, Willy Hernangomez added 15, Naji Marshall 14, Jaxson Hayes 13, Herbert Jones 12 and Jonas Valanciunas 10 to lead the short-handed Pelicans, who lost their fourth consecutive game.

New Orleans played its third consecutive game without leading scorer Brandon Ingram, who is sidelined by a hamstring strain. Second-leading scorer CJ McCollum, who had scored 32 points in each of the first two games that Ingram missed, also was sidelined after entering the health and safety protocol Thursday.

The Hornets began the third quarter with a 16-4 run to open a 77-59 lead with 8:57 left in the period.

The Pelicans got within 14 points on Murphy's 3-pointer midway through the quarter, but Rozier made a 3-pointer and Oubre two 3-pointers as Charlotte expanded its lead to 103-82 at the end of the period.

The score was tied four times and the lead changed hands four times during the first quarter. Ball's free throw broke the final tie and gave the Hornets a 25-24 lead at the end of the period.

The second quarter featured 10 lead changes and two ties before Harrell's 3-point play broke the final tie and started a 10-0 Charlotte run.

Hayes scored the Pelicans' final six points to trim the Hornets' lead to 61-55 at halftime.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Charlotte   New Orleans
Miles Bridges 26 Scoring Trey Murphy III 32
LaMelo Ball 9 Assists Herbert Jones 8
Miles Bridges 8 Rebounds Trey Murphy III 9
Miles Bridges 4 Free Throws Made Herbert Jones 6
LaMelo Ball 3 Steals Devonte' Graham 3
Mason Plumlee 1 Blocks Jaxson Hayes 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Charlotte 142 59.8 22-47 16-20 41 38 1 11 14
New Orleans 120 50.0 15-39 19-25 31 40 2 9 17
Upcoming Games
  • New Orleans will play their next game at home against Houston. The Pelicans have a W/L % of .444 after a win and .375 after a loss.
  • Charlotte will play their next game on the road against Oklahoma City. The Hornets have a W/L % of .531 after a win and .444 after a loss.