NBA: Hornets ride massive 3rd quarter to blow out 76ers

Charlotte Hornets guard Brandon Miller scored 30 points, leading a balanced offensive effort as the Hornets routed the visiting Philadelphia 76ers 130-93 on Monday afternoon.

Miller shot an efficient 9-for-11 from the field and made six 3-point baskets, marking his sixth straight game as Charlotte’s leading scorer. Ryan Kalkbrenner added 13 points, while Moussa Diabate, Kon Knueppel and Josh Green each contributed 12 points. LaMelo Ball finished with 11 points and eight assists, while Miles Bridges and Collin Sexton added 10 points each.

The Hornets dominated the third quarter, outscoring Philadelphia 40-15, and secured their third straight victory. Charlotte shot 56.6% from the field and made 17 of 41 attempts from beyond the arc.

For the 76ers, Kelly Oubre Jr. was the only starter to reach double figures with 17 points, shooting 7-for-12 from the field. Jared McCain scored 16 points, and Quentin Grimes added 14.

Philadelphia struggled without stars Joel Embiid and Paul George, who were sidelined due to injury management. The team has now lost five of its last seven games. The 76ers’ best performance came in the fourth quarter, where they scored 34 points, but they failed to score more than 22 points in any other quarter.

Charlotte finished with 34 assists on 47 made baskets and held Philadelphia to just two points in the first three minutes of the third quarter as the lead quickly expanded.

The Hornets led 69-44 at halftime and pushed the advantage to 41 points with more than five minutes left in the third quarter. By the end of the period, Charlotte led 109-59.

With Embiid absent, Charlotte’s big men dominated inside. Diabate and Kalkbrenner combined to shoot 12-for-15 from the field, including a perfect 5-for-5 in the first quarter, helping the Hornets take an early 28-22 lead.

The game’s start time was moved up by four hours due to weather-related concerns following a winter storm over the weekend.

—Field Level Media/Reuters