Bobcats Suffer First Loss Of Summer

SALT LAKE CITY, July 16 -- The Charlotte Bobcats lost for the first time this summer in the opening game of the Rocky Mountain Revue on Friday afternoon. In the event’s first game, the Bobcats fell to Atlanta, 87-62. Charlotte had a perfect 5-0 record in the Minnesota Summer League.

“We just didn’t have it today, we didn’t play well. We had trouble handling the ball and our turnovers hurt us because they converted on the other end,” said Gary Kloppenburg, the team’s coach for the game. “Our guys are resilient. They aren’t happy right now and I know we’ll bounce back tomorrow and have a much better performance.”

The first quarter was a rocky start for Charlotte, as the Hawks bolted out to an 8-0 lead in the first 2 1?2 minutes of the game. But the Bobcats bounced back with 10-straight points to take a 10-8 edge late in the quarter. Atlanta closed the period with six-straight points to claim a 14-10 lead. During a three-minute stretch in the quarter neither teams scored a point. The Bobcats shot .214 from the field in the opening period.

The Bobcats turned their shooting around in the second period by going 7-12 (.583) from the field. It was back-and-forth for the majority of the quarter and the Bobcats regained the lead at 23-22. Charlotte finished the quarter strong for a 36-29 halftime advantage after Danny Johnson converted two free throws with 1.7 seconds left. Maurice Carter scored eight points in the period and Loren Woods finished the first half with six points and eight rebounds.

Atlanta scored the first six points in the opening 1:30 of the third quarter to move within 36-35. The Hawks continue to take advantage of Bobcats turnovers and used a 12-2 run to build a 53-47 lead late in the quarter. The teams traded three-pointers in the last five seconds of the quarter and Atlanta held a 56-50 lead after three periods. The Hawks scored 11 points off nine Charlotte turnovers in the quarter and Atlanta shot .524 from the field in the period.

Another slow start plagued the Bobcats early in the fourth quarter as Atlanta scored the first six points to claim a 62-50 advantage. The Bobcats trailed by as many as 27 points in the quarter as Atlanta outscored Charlotte 31-12 in the final period. Atlanta shot .750 (12-15) from the field in the fourth quarter.

Loren Woods posted a double-double with 13 points and 16 rebounds and he added three blocks. Maurice Carter scored a team-high 15 points off the bench and Jason Kapono and Danny Johnson added 10 points each.