By Sam Perley, hornets.com
Key Matchup vs. Pacers: Cody Zeller vs. David West The Hornets will be looking for revenge after dropping a last-second heartbreaker against Indiana on Nov. 19 and fans can expect Cody Zeller to be a key component for Charlotte as they look to even the season series… Zeller had a breakout game on Jan. 5 against the Boston Celtics, finishing with a career-high 20 points on 8-of-8 shooting from the field and 4-of-4 from the free throw line. Zeller is averaging career highs in both points (7.9) and rebounds (5.3) this season and has started 23 of his 39 games this season at power forward for the Hornets… After getting through a minor shoulder injury that held him out of the lineup on Jan. 8 in Toronto and possibly forced him to see limited playing time on Jan. 10 in New York, Zeller should and will need to be at full strength when Indiana comes to town as he is expected to spend plenty of time with one of the NBA’s most physical players in David West… West missed the first 15 games of the season because of an ankle injury yet remains an above-average post threat even in the later years of his career, averaging 12.7 points and 6.8 rebounds on the season. Despite being in his 12th NBA season, West is still regarded as one of the toughest players in the league and is one of the main focal points of the Pacers offensive game plan especially with Paul George out for the season after breaking his leg over the summer... Zeller’s ability to match West’s physicality and not allow him to take control of the paint will be a major factor in whether the Hornets will emerge victorious over the Pacers.
Key Matchup vs. Timberwolves: Gerald Henderson vs. Andrew Wiggins Gerald Henderson filled in admirably as the Hornets starting shooting guard when Lance Stephenson went down with a hip injury on Dec. 17. Stephenson returned on Jan. 14 after a 14-game absence and is expected to see limited minutes off the bench for a few games, leaving Henderson in the starting lineup for at least another week and maybe longer moving forward… Henderson is averaging 14.7 points in the month of January, highlighted by a season-high 31 points against Toronto on Jan. 8 while also recording 5.0 rebounds and 3.9 assists this month. While Henderson has stepped up offensively for the injury-depleted Hornets, his defense will have to be just as sharp as he will likely be matched up with Minnesota’s dynamic rookie, Andrew Wiggins… Wiggins has been on a tear as of late, scoring 20-or-more points in nine of his last 11 games and giving Timberwolves fans hope for the future even though they sit in last place in the Western Conference standings with a 6-31 record… Despite the record, Minnesota is a young, talented team that is rebuilding following the trade of Kevin Love and has also played most of the season without starters Ricky Rubio, Nikola Pekovic and Kevin Martin who all went down in November with injuries… Like Henderson, Wiggins is also filling in a shooting guard for the injured Kevin Martin yet possesses small forward height at 6’8” and fantastic athleticism for somebody in just their rookie year... Minnesota’s offense will run through the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft and Henderson and the Hornets will need to make sure they do not sleep on the rookie from Kansas if they want to send the Timberwolves back to Minnesota with a loss.
Scouting the Hornets (15-25)Charlotte saw its season-high five-game winning streak come to an end on Jan. 14 in a 98-93 home loss to the San Antonio Spurs despite another big night from Kemba Walker who finished with 28 points. Bismack Biyombo recorded his second-consecutive double-double, finishing with 12 points, a season-high 15 rebounds and five blocks… Cody Zeller tallied eight points and 10 rebounds for his best rebounding performance since pulling down 14 against Golden State on Nov. 28… Gerald Henderson and P.J. Hairston also both reached double figures finishing with 11 points each… Kemba Walker has scored 25-or-more points in six-consecutive games, which is the longest streak of his career. Walker is also second in the NBA in scoring for the month of January (27.0), trailing only the Cleveland Cavaliers LeBron James, who finished with 33 points on Jan. 13 in his only game of the month so far… Michael Kidd-Gilchrist has already matched his career high with six double doubles on the season despite playing in only 26 of Charlotte’s 40 games and is averaging 10.9 points and 9.6 rebounds through seven games in January… Henderson has increased his scoring average from 10.9 points in December to 14.7 points in January despite only playing 3.3 minutes more a game… Zeller is averaging career-highs in both points (7.9) and rebounds (5.3)… … P.J. Hairston has scored in double figures in Charlotte’s last two games including a career-high 15 points against New York on Jan. 10. Hairston has finished in double-digit scoring in consecutive games for the second time this season, also doing so on Dec. 22 and Dec. 23… Al Jefferson has not played since Dec. 29 (groin). Charlotte is 5-3 this season without Jefferson… Charlotte continues to lead the league in defensive rebounding percentage (80.2 percent) and offensive rebounds surrounded (8.2), which is a full 1.3 offensive rebounds ahead of the the second-ranked Indiana Pacers. The Hornets led the NBA in both categories last season with a .776 defensive rebounding percentage and 9.6 offensive rebounds surrendered… Charlotte also leads the NBA in least amount of turnovers per game (11.1).
Scouting the Pacers (15-25) The Pacers edged out the visiting Hornets in their first meeting this season on Nov. 19 in Indiana, 88-86. Solomon Hill tipped in Rodney Stuckey’s deflected shot at the last second to seal the victory for the hometown Pacers who won their 11th-consecutive home game against Charlotte…Al Jefferson led the way for the Hornets with 28 points and eight rebounds while Lance Stephenson finished with 10 points and eight rebounds in his first trip back to Indiana since signing with Charlotte in the offseason…Roy Hibbert posted a double-double with 18 points and 11 boards while Luis Scola (15 points), Donald Sloan and Rodney Stuckey (11 points) all finished in double figures for the Pacers… David West (12.7), C.J. Miles (12.4), Rodney Stuckey (11.7), Roy Hibbert (11.3), C.J. Watson (11.0), Solomon Hill (10.3) and Donald Sloan (10.0) are all active players averaging double figures for Indiana… Roy Hibbert ranks second in the NBA in free throw percentage for centers (83.5 percent) and seventh overall in the NBA in blocks (1.89). Hibbert also leads the Pacers in rebounding (7.0)… Donald Sloan leads the Pacers in assists (4.5) and is sixth in the NBA in assists to turnovers (3.31)… Indiana is 2-21 this season when trailing at the start of the fourth quarter… Indiana is ranked fifth in the NBA in rebounding differential (3.0)… The Pacers dropped consecutive games on Jan. 10 and Jan. 13 to the Philadelphia 76ers and Minnesota Timberwolves, respectively. Only the New York Knicks (.125) have a worst winning percentage than Philadelphia (.184) and Minnesota (.162) who are a combined 13-61 on the season… George Hill has only appeared in five games this season (knee/groin) and has not played since Dec. 31 against the Miami Heat… As of Jan. 12, Pacers players have combined to miss 147 games so far this season leading to 10 different starting lineups for Indiana. Last season, the 17 players on Indiana’s roster missed 69 games leading to just five different starting lineups which was the fewest of any team in the NBA… Lance Stephenson was a member of the Indiana Pacers from 2010-14…Gary Neal and George Hill were teammates on the San Antonio Spurs from 2010-11… Indiana has won 15 of its last 17 games against Charlotte. The Hornets won their last home game against the Pacers, 109-87 on Mar. 5, 2014… The Hornets and Pacers will meet again in Charlotte on Feb. 8 and conclude the season series in Indiana on Apr. 3.
Scouting the Timberwolves (6-31)Minnesota snapped a 15-game losing streak on Jan. 13 on the road against the Indiana Pacers thanks to a career night from guard Mo Williams, who scored a franchise-record 52 points in the 110-101 victory…Andrew Wiggins (20), Thaddeus Young (11) and Gorgui Dieng (10) also finished in double figures for Minnesota….Dieng also pulled down 10 rebounds for his 10th double-double of the season… According to Elias, Williams’ average of 11.0 points is the second-lowest in NBA history of any player at the time of a 50-point game. Terrence Ross of the Toronto Raptors averaged 9.3 points when he scored 51 points in a 126-118 loss against the Los Angeles Clippers on Jan. 25, 2014… Andrew Wiggins leads all rookies with 14.7 points, 32.7 minutes and three-point percentage (38.7 percent). Wiggins was also named Western Conference Rookie of the Month for November and December and is the only Minnesota player to start all 37 games this season… Gorgui Dieng leads the Timberwolves in rebounding (8.3) while Mo Williams is tops on Minnesota in assists (6.6)… Zach LaVine ranks fourth in the NBA in rookie scoring (8.6) and second in assists (3.6)… Minnesota is last in the NBA in points allowed per game (108.1) and defensive shooting percentage (49.6 percent)… Ricky Rubio has been sidelined since Nov. 7 (ankle). Rubio averaged 10.0 assists through Minnesota’s first five games prior to his injury… Nikola Pekovic has played in just nine games this season and has been out since Nov. 15 (ankle)… Kevin Martin has been out since Nov. 19 (wrist). Martin was averaging 20.4 points through nine games at the time of his injury, which was the highest on the team… All three players are doubtful to play against Charlotte on Jan. 19 in addition to Shabazz Muhammad, who is expected to be out for at least two weeks (abdomen) and has not played since Jan. 10 against San Antonio… Nine players on Minnesota’s roster have less than two years of NBA experience. Minnesota tied with the Boston Celtics and Orlando Magic for the fourth-youngest team in the NBA at the beginning of the 2014-15 season (24.9 years)… Minnesota sent All-Star Kevin Love to Cleveland last summer as part of a three-team deal and received Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett from the Cavaliers and Thaddeus Young from the Philadelphia 76ers. Wiggins and Bennett were both selected first overall in the 2014 and 2013 NBA Drafts, respectively… Al Jefferson was traded to Minnesota from Boston on Jul. 31, 2007 in a deal that sent Kevin Garnett to the Celtics. Jefferson played for the Timberwolves until 2010 before being traded to the Utah Jazz… Miroslav Raduljica and Gary Neal were teammates on the Milwaukee Bucks during the 2013-14 season… Charlotte has won four of their last five homes games against Minnesota and three of the last four overall… The Hornets and Timberwolves will conclude the season series on Mar. 22 in Minnesota.
Tune InThese games can be seen on FOX SportSouth and can be heard on WFNZ or the official Charlotte Hornets mobile app.