Clippers and Hornets had an appointment near the Staples Center to wrap up the night. A word of advice for our friends from North Carolina: a quarter is twelve minutes and not five.
For the house stats of this Clippers-Hornets, it’s right here.
Strange match that this Batumico that we lived last night. A meeting that will not appear on the list of must see of the season, because too much waste (33 lost balls) but a finish that was worth all the popcorn in the world. On the menu: show (Miles Bridges, Terance Mann), cocorico who performs (Nico Batum: 16 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals) but also a ghost who hadn’t put on shorts for a long, long time (Serge Ibaka, for those who might wonder). All this is the aperitif but it is the money time that will interest us here. How did the Hornets pull off? After five minutes into the final half, they were on the right track. Terry Rozier was doing his number, Cody Martin had added a missile from afar and the Clippers were off the field on the other side of the field. And then there was this downtime of Tyronn Lue looking annoyed. Coincidence or coincidence, this fits perfectly with the start of a merciless revolt for the Angelinos. They weren’t planting anything? Everything fits now. The defense was shouting? It is now impeccable. For six minutes, the Hornets will not score a single point and they will concede a 22-0! If we take between the moment of the time-out (approximately 7m10) and the final whistle, it is even a 27-4 which falls on the heads of the men of James Borrego. And this is how to lose a match that seemed almost in the pocket.
As often, we tend to put the big choke only on the losers but we must also see the efforts and the desire shown by the Clippers to turn the tide. Pushed by their home crowd, the Californians worked hard at the right time and thwarted their opponents of the day. Silencing the League’s second attack on points is not nothing but it is also proof that Charlotte cannot survive the slightest offensive black hole since the defense is non-existent at the start of the season (30th in the defensive rating). The positive point ? They’re playing again tonight and they can put that result behind them. The negative point ? It’s hard to forget when you play… in the same room (the Lakers are on the program). It will be necessary if they want to put an end to a series of four defeats in a row.
The Clippers turned the Hornets over and the bill was tough. Going from -9 to +14 in seven minutes, it’s not even a comeback, it’s a change of season. We know a landlord who shouldn’t have appreciated.
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