Hornets at Hawks
If the Charlotte Hornets are going to have any chance of rallying to snag a playoff spot in the final five weeks of the regular season, they'll have to do plenty of damage against the Atlanta Hawks. The teams meet three times in a four-week span, beginning Monday night in Atlanta, where the Hornets will try to build upon one of their better wins of the season.
Behind 24 points from Terry Rozier and a fast start in which it scored the game's first 20 points, Charlotte picked up a 108-99 triumph over Western Conference power Houston on Saturday. "This was a good one for us tonight," rookie forward P.J. Washington told reporters as the Hornets pulled within six games of eighth-place Orlando in the East entering Sunday. "We felt like we should have won the last two so just coming out with the same intensity that we did those last two games tonight and it got us a win so we are trying to look to do that the rest of the season." Charlotte has won six of its past 11 to give itself a slight pulse in the race but it will play four of its next five on the road. The Hawks are opening a three-game homestand after falling 118-101 at Memphis on Saturday, and they entered Sunday in a virtual tie with Cleveland at the bottom of the East.
TIME: 7:30 p.m. ET. TV: FS Southeast
ABOUT THE HORNETS (22-41): While the playoffs are a bit of a long shot, coach James Borrego witnessed a sign of growth against the Rockets after his team lost most of the early 20-point lead but fended off each Houston run in the wire-to-wire triumph. "The momentum was shifting a little there," Borrego told reporters of a second quarter in which the Rockets got to within three. "Our heads were hanging for a second. I could feel it. We called a timeout there and rallied the troops again and everybody picked their spirits up. I think the way we closed the second quarter is a big part of this game. And I think that's the maturity that we're talking about with this young group." Devonte' Graham added 23 points and Washington chipped in 22 on 8-of-11 shooting.
ABOUT THE HAWKS (19-46): All-Star guard Trae Young missed Friday's loss at Washington due to flu-like symptoms and he was still feeling the effects in the visit to Memphis, scoring 16 points on 4-of-16 shooting. "I definitely tried to fight back," he told reporters. "I know everybody was kind of banged up with the back-to-back, so I wanted to come back and play." John Collins carried the load with 27 points and he is averaging 24.9 since the start of February.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Rozier is 11-of-18 from 3-point range over his last two games.
2. The Hawks have won five of their last seven and eight of their last 11 at home.
3. Young had 30 points and nine assists in a 122-107 win at Charlotte on Dec. 8.