Hornets 99, Heat 81
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Forward Marvin Williams and guard Kemba Walker scored 18 points apiece, and guard Nicolas Batum had his first triple-double of the season as the Charlotte Hornets blasted the Miami Heat 99-81 Wednesday night.
The Hornets dominated throughout, leading by as many as 22 points in the first half and extending the lead to 30 in the second half.
The win moved the Hornets (13-8) past the Heat (12-8) into first place in the Southeast Division. The Hornets have now won three straight and eight of their last 10.
Williams hit four 3-pointers, on a night when the Hornets shot 49.4 percent from the field and were 11 of 27 from 3-point range. Walker was 8 of 13 from the field.
Batum finished with 10 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in 28 minutes of action. He sat out the final nine minutes with the game well in hand.
Guard Tyler Johnson led the Heat with 20 points off the bench, including 15 in the fourth quarter. Guard Dwyane Wade and forward Gerald Green scored 11 each, and forward Chris Bosh scored just seven. The Heat shot just 38.7 percent from the field.
Charlotte led 27-17 after one quarter, 56-36 at halftime, and 80-54 after three quarters.
NOTES: The NBA announced Wednesday a five-game suspension for Hornets C Al Jefferson after he violated the league's anti-drug policy. Jefferson missed his fourth straight game with a strained calf and is expected to be sidelined at least another week. The suspension won't start until he is fully healthy. Jefferson was suspended for two games by the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2010 for a DWI charge. ... Heat F Luol Deng returned after missing the previous six games with a strained hamstring. ... This was the second of four meetings between the Southeast Division rivals. The Heat won 104-94 on opening night in Miami. ... The Hornets were coming off a 104-84 win over the Pistons on Monday and the Heat were coming off a 114-103 loss to Washington on Monday. ... Heat C Hassan Whiteside came into the game leading the NBA in blocked shots at 4.47 per game. His 85 blocks are more than the team totals for Cleveland, Dallas, Detroit and Washington. He is also second in the NBA in field goal percentage at .617. ... The Hornets will travel to Memphis on Friday before returning home to face Boston on Saturday. The Heat will play at Indiana on Friday.