Hornets spoil Heat's home opener
MIAMI -- Kemba Walker had a game-high 24 points and the Charlotte Hornets stormed back from a 19-point third-quarter deficit to defeat the Miami Heat 97-91 on Friday night at AmericanAirlines Arena.
The Hornets (2-0) never led in the first three quarters as the Heat (1-1) dominated early. But Charlotte's defense and depth wore down Miami, which had won eight straight home openers entering Friday.
Walker, who had just nine points at the half, helped Charlotte rally with his play after intermission. In addition, the Hornets got 51 points from their bench.
The Hornets won despite getting dominated in a matchup between starting centers Roy Hibbert of Charlotte and Hassan Whiteside of Miami.
Hibbert played just four minutes -- no points, one rebound, no blocks -- before exiting because of soreness in his right knee.
Whiteside produced his second straight double-double of the season with 20 points and 15 rebounds in just 27 minutes.
Still, the Heat, playing their home opener in the first year since they parted with Dwyane Wade (Chicago Bulls) and Chris Bosh (illness), had little firepower beyond Whiteside.
The Heat turned the ball over 20 times and shot 38 percent from the floor.
In the first quarter, Miami led by as many as nine points before the Hornets cut their deficit to 23-21. Whiteside had nine points and seven rebounds in the quarter and also got a bloody left elbow after he was tied up in the post with Hornets center Cody Zeller.
The Heat stretched their lead to 57-46 at halftime. The Hornets shot just 31.8 percent from the field in the first half and had only four second-chance points, nine less than Miami in that category.
Charlotte trailed by as many as 19 points in the third quarter before rallying. Miami led by just one point when Tyler Johnson closed the quarter with a 3-pointer from the right wing, giving the Heat a 77-73 lead.
Through three quarters, the Charlotte bench outscored Miami's reserves 37-28.
NOTES: The Heat was without SGs Josh Richardson (knee) and Wayne Ellington (quad) for the second straight game. ... The Hornets were without PF Frank Kaminsky (foot) for the second straight game. ... Former Heat PF Amar'e Stoudemire will graduate on Tuesday from Miami Dade College's Auxiliary Police Academy. ... The Heat and Hornets are developing a rivalry. They split a four-game regular-season series last season and then went to seven games in a first-round playoff series before Miami prevailed. ... Charlotte plays its home opener on Saturday night against the Boston Celtics. ... Miami's homestand continues Sunday night when the San Antonio Spurs visit.