After the shorthanded Charlotte Hornets put together two fantastic offensive quarters of basketball in the first half, the New York Knicks tightened up a defense that has led them to the playoff race.
Charlotte scored 33 points in each of the first two quarters to take a 66-60 lead into the break, but the Hornets scored just 31 second half points after the threes stopped falling in a 109-97 loss.
RJ Barrett’s scoring helped to pace the Knicks in their comeback as the second-year pro had a team-high 24 points. P.J. Washington had a game-high 26 points off the bench for Charlotte to lead the way. The Hornets fell to 28-29 with the loss as the Knicks won their seventh game in a row to jump to 32-27.
Here are three takeaways from a disastrous second half for Charlotte: