National Basketball Association
Charlotte 106, New Orleans 103
When: 7:00 PM ET, Monday, March 21, 2022
Where: Spectrum Center, Charlotte, North Carolina
Officials: #67 Brandon Adair, #26 Pat Fraher, #21 Dedric Taylor
Attendance: 13351

LaMelo Ball and Terry Rozier scored 17 points apiece and the Charlotte Hornets finally caught up in the final minutes in a 106-103 victory against the visiting New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday in a clash of teams vying for playoff spots.

Charlotte's Mason Plumlee scored on two dunks in the final minute, but Pelicans rookie guard Jose Alvarado answered the second of those with a hoop, cutting the gap to 104-103. Ball countered by making a running floater with 8.9 seconds to stretch Charlotte's lead in what became their fifth consecutive win.

The hosts nearly forced a turnover before Devonte' Graham, an ex-Hornet playing as a visitor for the first time in Charlotte, missed on a desperation heave from just inside midcourt.

Miles Bridges tacked on 16 points on his 24th birthday, Isaiah Thomas scored 15 points off the bench, reserve Montrezl Harrell had 12 points and Plumlee finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds for the Hornets. Charlotte made 13 of 19 shots in the fourth quarter.

CJ McCollum had 27 points and six assists while Jonas Valanciunas added 24 points and 18 rebounds for the Pelicans, who had won three of their previous four games, including a road game a night earlier at Atlanta. Reserve Naji Marshall contributed 14 points.

Ball accounted for four of Charlotte's 13 baskets from 3-point range, with the team attempting 37 treys. New Orleans was 9-for-24 from long distance.

Down by six after three quarters, the Hornets later scored eight straight points to tie the game at 95-95.

The Pelicans had missed eight shots in a row before Jaxson Hayes dunked to break the drought, giving New Orleans a two-point lead with 2:27 left. Bridges then hit a 3-pointer to push the Hornets ahead for the first time since the first five minutes of the game.

After Hayes made two free throws, P.J. Washington's hook shot with 1:32 to go put Charlotte on top for good.

New Orleans seemed to run into trouble midway through the third quarter when a flagrant-2 foul called against Herbert Jones on an offensive foul resulted in his ejection. However, McCollum racked up 15 points in the period as the Pelicans maintained a lead.

McCollum managed just two points in the fourth quarter.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
New Orleans   Charlotte
CJ McCollum 27 Scoring LaMelo Ball 17
CJ McCollum 6 Assists LaMelo Ball 9
Jonas Valanciunas 18 Rebounds Mason Plumlee 10
CJ McCollum 4 Free Throws Made Mason Plumlee 3
Herbert Jones 2 Steals Miles Bridges 1
Jonas Valanciunas 2 Blocks LaMelo Ball 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
New Orleans 103 44.4 9-24 14-16 23 47 4 9 15
Charlotte 106 50.6 13-37 13-15 34 35 10 5 17
Upcoming Games
  • Charlotte will play their next game at home against New York. The Hornets have a W/L % of .583 after a win and .444 after a loss.
  • New Orleans will play their next game at home against Chicago. The Pelicans have a W/L % of .433 after a win and .405 after a loss.