In what will likely be their last game before a plethora of new faces start being integrated into the rotation, the more-shorthanded-than-normal Charlotte Hornets never got going in any capacity in a 120-84 blowout road loss to Milwaukee on Friday night.
Brandon Miller had 16 points in the loss, ending his consecutive 20-point-game streak at six. Nick Richards also added 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting and a team-high 11 rebounds for his 11th seasonal double-double and second in four games. These two were really the biggest bright spots for the Hornets, who had just 10 available players (three two-ways) following Thursday’s departures of Gordon Hayward, PJ Washington, Ish Smith, Frank Ntilikina, and James Bouknight.
With literally no true point guard on the roster and one center, Charlotte’s offense was scattered all over the place right from the start, as only 5-of-21 first quarter attempts went down (23.8%). Things got slightly better in the second (8-of-20 shooting), but Milwaukee drained seven 3-pointers on its way to a 35-point frame and a 66-38 halftime lead. The Bucks won the third by eight and then completely coasted to their largest victory of the season.
“We all have to play the same game,” said Hornets Head Coach Steve Clifford following the loss. “We’ve got to be unselfish, inside-out and move the ball. Their physicality had a lot to do with that. They went after us early in the game. We struggled to run offense and we had some really poor decision-making in the first half in trying to challenge [Brook] Lopez at the rim. Hopefully, something we can learn from because we’re going to play them two more times.
Bryce McGowens (season-high-tying 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting) scored in double figures for the fourth time in five games, while Miles Bridges’ two-game 40-point streak came to a screeching halt (11 points on 2-of-16 shooting). The Hornets shot a season-low 34.2% (27-of-79) and converted a minuscule 15-of-34 paint tires (44.1%). This loss makes Charlotte the only NBA team this season with multiple losing streaks of at least 10 games and marks the first such occurrence in franchise history since 2012-13.
Soon-to-be new Charlotte players Dāvis Bertāns, Tre Mann, Vasilije Micić, Grant Williams and Seth Curry should all be available in uniform on Saturday night. When asked about figuring out the reshuffled roster, Clifford added, “We were focused on tonight. We’ll watch some film on the way home and we’ll focus on that now.”
All-Star starter Damian Lillard notched game highs in both points (26 on 9-of-18 shooting) and assists (eight) for Milwaukee, which won only its second game under recently hired Head Coach Doc Rivers (2-5). Malik Beasley canned 7-of-9 3-point attempts for 21 points, while Giannis Antetokounmpo double-doubled with 15 points and a game-high 15 rebounds in only 24 minutes. Milwaukee’s victory moved its record to 7-2 this season on the second night of back-to-backs, tying Boston for the best such winning percentage in the NBA.
The Hornets will close out their own back-to-back and start a three-game homestand against the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday, Feb. 10 beginning at 7 PM ET at Spectrum Center. Catch all the action on Bally Sports Southeast and WFNZ 92.7 FM.
Hornets vs Bucks Gallery ‑ 02/09/24
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