By Shane Skeary, hornets.com
THE RESULT
P.J. Hairston led all scorers with 21 points and Cody Zeller and Rion Brown had 16 apiece as the Hornets won their second-straight game, taking care of the New Orleans Pelicans, 104-75, to move on to the quarterfinals of the 2014 Samsung NBA Summer League Tournament on July 17 at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas.
TURNING POINTS
The Hornets got off to a great start as they led wire-to-wire, jumping out to an early 13-5 advantage and ending the first quarter on a 10-0 run to lead the Pelicans, 34-13. New Orleans tried to cut into the lead on several occasions throughout the game, but the Hornets remained in command as led by as many as 33 late in the fourth, sealing the victory.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Charlotte had their best offensive game of the summer to date and had offensive contributions from 10 players, five of which registered in double-figures: P.J. Hairston (21), Cody Zeller (16), Rion Brown (16), Justin Brownlee (14) and Josh Pelicansthey shot an impressive 50.0 percent from the field, 60.0 percent from three and 76.2 percent from the foul line… For the second straight game, Charlotte outrebounded its opponent. Led by Josh Davis (12), the Hornets grabbed 38 rebounds (12 offensive) compared to just 26 for the Pelicans… Behind Mickey McConnell’s 11 assists, the Hornets had its best game sharing the ball, dishing out 19 assists. New Orleans handed out just 12 assists… Charlotte showed active hands on the defensive end, tallying seven steals for a total of 16 New Orleans turnovers. The Hornets limited themselves to just 11 turnovers and allowed just five Pelican steals.
HORNETS PLAYER OF THE GAME
P.J. Hairston continued to be Charlotte’s hot hand, finishing with a game-high 21 points (4-of-9 from three), three assists, two assists and two steals in 29 minutes. It is Hairston’s fourth-consecutive game with double-figure scoring numbers.
PELICANS PLAYER OF THE GAME
Russ Smith did what he could for New Orleans. He finished tied for a team-high with 19 points, adding six assists and five rebounds in 26 minutes.
GAME NOTES
The Hornets improve to 2-3 in the 2014 Samsung NBA Summer League and will advance to the quarterfinals of the 2014 Samsung Summer League… Cody Zeller his third-straight double-figure scoring game with 16 points. He added seven rebounds and two steals to his stat line for Charlotte… Noah Vonleh had his bouts with foul trouble, finishing with just six points (3-of-11 shooting) and five rebounds… Mickey McConnell dished out a game-high 11 assists, which is the second-highest total in Summer League play this year... Josh Davis continued his terror on the glass with his third double-digit rebound game of the 2014 Samsung Summer League, hauling down a game-high 12 rebounds in the win.
NEXT UP
The 23rd seeded Hornets will take on the winner of the New York Knicks/D-League Selects game in the quarterfinals of the 2014 Samsung Summer League Tournament.