Struggling Charlotte Hornets Look to Rebound Against the Warriors
After losing to the Blazers, the Charlotte Hornets look to end their losing streak on the second night of a back to back against the Golden State Warriors.
The Charlotte Hornets (23-26) are struggling to find their way in a heated Eastern Conference playoff race. They’ve lost five straight games now that they got blown out by the Portland Trail Blazers in their last outing. This road trip doesn’t get any easier for Buzz City as Steve Clifford’s side has lost eight consecutive games away from home.
In the second night of a back to back, they take on the team with the best record in the NBA. That would be the Golden State Warriors (41-7). These are recently familiar opponents as the Warriors traveled to Charlotte last week. In a game that the Hornets gave away in the 4th quarter, the Warriors would win by 10 points. Now, the Queen City team will look to return the favor in Oakland.
Despite the great effort the last time the Hornets played Golden State, it still wasn’t enough to trump their talented roster, led by MVP’s Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry, the Warriors have been the class of the NBA so far this season. The Hornets, led by first-time all-star Kemba Walker, have a tall task ahead of them this evening.
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Charlotte Hornets @ Golden State Warriors
10:30 p.m. EST, Wednesday, February 1st, 2017
Oracle Arena
Broadcast on FOX Sports Southeast
Injury Report:
CHA:
OUT – Cody Zeller (quad contusion), missed last four games (1/25 – 1/31)
GSW:
David West (non-displaced fracture, left thumb) is out.
Charlotte has struggled on both sides of the ball over this long losing streak. They’re losing games that, quite frankly, they need to win to stay in the top 8. However, this one will certainly not be easy especially on the road against a team that almost never loses there.
Overall, it is going to take the best efforts of Kemba Walker and Nicolas Batum to upset the Warriors on their home floor. Steve Clifford wasn’t creative with his rotations last night in Portland. This will have to change if the Hornets are to win this game. They must attack the offensive glass at will to gain extra possessions.
Also, they must execute on offense and try to hang around long enough to steal the game at the end. It may take a near flawless effort to be a team like Golden State. We’ll see how this one goes for the team. Hopefully, the Hornets are ready to give a better effort than they did last night.
