Nets lose to streaking Hornets 117-86; Josh Minott scores 14 points
· Yahoo Sports
NEW YORK -- The Brooklyn Nets (18-58) were coming off their first win in 11 games that allowed them to feel good about themselves, even for just a couple of days. Brooklyn had a tough matchup in front of their fans with the Charlotte Hornets (40-36) visiting Barclays Center on Tuesday, but it looks like the Nets weren't ready to play to begin the matchup.
The Nets lost to the Hornets 117-86 after losing the first and third quarters by a combined 30 points thanks to how much Brooklyn's starting unit struggled against the surging Hornets. Forward Josh Minott led the way for the Nets with his 14 points and two rebounds in 23 minutes off the bench while forward Chaney Johnson had 11 points and four rebounds off the bench.
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Brooklyn began the game on the wrong end of a 35-18 score to begin the first quarter as Charlotte shot 54.5% from the field and 40.0% from behind the three-point line. Hornets guard Brandon Miller, who finished the game with 25 points and three assists, scored 16 points in the first quarter, showing what kind of game he was set up for with the way he was shooting the ball.
The Nets were able to close the gap somewhat in the second quarter as they won the period 27-23 thanks to Minott and rookie Nolan Traore scoring six points each in the quarter. However, the second quarter showed that Brooklyn wasn't going to hit the shots necessary to keep up with one of the hottest teams in the Eastern Conference in the Hornets, but the Nets struggled in areas other than just shooting.
Charlotte, thanks to their center rotation of Moussa Diabate and Ryan Kalkbrenner, were able to out-rebound Brooklyn 47-30 and it seemed like the trend repeated through most of the hustle stats. The Nets weren't able to continue their winning streak against the Hornets, but they will have the chance to begin a new streak with Friday's game against the Atlanta Hawks.
This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Nets lose to streaking Hornets 117-86; Josh Minott scores 14 points