NBA: Lonzo Ball, Hornets topple Kings with barrage of 3s

The Charlotte Hornets overcame a halftime deficit to beat the Sacramento Kings 117-109 on Wednesday night, powered by a sharpshooting performance from LaMelo Ball and Kon Knueppel.

Miles Bridges led a key third-quarter charge with nine of his 26 points, while Ball and Knueppel combined for 11 3-pointers and 54 points. Ball finished with a team-high 30 points, Knueppel added 24, and Brandon Miller contributed 20 as Charlotte won for the eighth time in its last 10 games.

DeMar DeRozan scored a season-high 39 points for the Kings, who saw their rare two-game winning streak come to an end.

After trailing by five at halftime, the Hornets tied the game at 73-all early in the third period before taking the lead for good with an 11-2 run. Bridges sparked the surge with a layup and a 3-pointer, eventually extending the lead to 84-75 with a pair of layups.

The Kings cut the deficit to five early in the fourth quarter and stayed within 99-94 with 8:20 remaining. But Knueppel’s layup and 3-pointer opened a double-digit lead that Charlotte held for most of the rest of the game.

Ball made 6 of 13 3-pointers, and Knueppel went 5 of 8, helping Charlotte shoot 47.5% from beyond the arc (19 of 40) and outscore Sacramento 57-24 from deep. Bridges, Ball, Knueppel, and Miller accounted for 100 of Charlotte’s 117 points.

Moussa Diabate led all players with 10 rebounds, including six on the offensive end.

For the Kings, DeRozan’s 39 points came on 17-of-22 shooting, helping Sacramento shoot 54.2% as a team compared to Charlotte’s 45.6%. Nique Clifford added 18 points and a game-high seven assists, Precious Achiuwa had 14 points and eight rebounds, Daequon Plowden scored 13, and Killian Hayes had 11. Sacramento was aiming for its third straight win for just the second time this season.

– Field Level Media/Reuters