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Spurs Stump Charlotte

By Sam Perley, hornets.com

The ResultThe Hornets bounced back in the second half after a rough start to the game but it wasn’t enough to knock off the Spurs as they fell, 95-86 on Wednesday, Jan. 28 in San Antonio. Gerald Henderson scored 18 points to lead the Hornets, who played their first game since announcing starting point guard and leading scorer Kemba Walker would miss the next six weeks as he recovers from a torn lateral meniscus. Tony Parker finished with 17 points to lead five Spurs players in double figures. 

Turning PointsCharlotte made things interesting in the third quarter outscoring the Spurs 26-14 after ending the first half down, 55-38. San Antonio’s lead dwindled to 69-67 with 11:18 remaining in the fourth quarter before back-to-back three-pointers by Matt Bonner and Manu Ginobili helped spark a 12-0 Spurs run leading to a 14-point lead that Charlotte was never able to overcome. The Hornets dropped their ninth straight game to the Spurs and have not won in San Antonio since November 15, 2006. 

Inside the Box ScoreGerald Henderson scored 18 points and has finished in double figures in six of his last seven games… Cody Zeller finished with nine points, 13 rebounds and a career-high seven assists. This was Zeller’s third double-digit rebounding performance in the last seven games and fifth overall on the season… Michael Kidd-Gilchrist finished with 14 points and three rebounds and has scored in double figures in four of his last five games… Gary Neal finished with 12 points off the bench… Tim Duncan posted his 22nd double-double on the season finishing with 12 points and 14 rebounds… Danny Green finished with 16 points, five rebounds and three blocks while connecting on 4-of-8 attempts from three-point range… Matt Bonner and Manu Ginobili each tallied ten points… San Antonio out-rebounded the Hornets, 49-43… Both teams finished with 23 assists and seven blocks. Charlotte recorded only nine assists in their last game against New York on Jan. 24.  

Hornets Player of the GameAl Jefferson made his first start since coming back from a nine-game absence on Jan. 19 finishing with 17 points and a season-high 16 rebounds for Charlotte. Jefferson recorded his second double-double in the last three games and 12th overall on the season. 

Spurs Player of the GameTony Parker tallied 17 points and a team-high five assists to lead the hometown Spurs to their sixth win in their last seven games. Parker has now scored 17-or-more points in four of his last seven games for San Antonio.  

Game NotesIn addition to Walker, the Hornets were also without Bismack Biyombo (knee), Marvin Williams (head) and Jannero Pargo (back)…the short-handed Hornets turned to rookie Noah Vonleh in the first half who finshed the game with four points in nine minutes… Reggie Williams made an appearance for San Antonio in the final minutes of the game. Williams signed a 10-day contract with the Spurs earlier in the day and played in Charlotte from 2011-2013. 

Next UpThe Hornets head west to take on the Denver Nuggets on Saturday, Jan. 31 at 9:00 PM. The game can be seen on FOX SportsSouth or heard on WFNZ or on the official Charlotte Hornets mobile app.