Walker, Hornets blast Pacers
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Kemba Walker had 24 points and 10 assists in less than three quarters of action, and the Charlotte Hornets won their third straight with an easy 122-100 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Monday night at the Spectrum Center.
The Hornets reversed a season-long trend of slow starts and erupted for 43 first-quarter points, hitting 11 of their first 13 shots from the field and scoring on their first 12 possessions. They led by as many as 21 in the first quarter.
Charlotte (5-1) is off to the best start in franchise history.
Walker was 5 of 6 from 3-point range before taking an early seat with the Hornets leading by as many as 28 in the second half.
The Hornets also got 13 points each from Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Cody Zeller and Spencer Hawes, 12 points each from Marvin Williams and Marco Belinelli, 11 points from Frank Kaminsky, and 10 points from Ramon Sessions. Hawes had a double-double with 13 rebounds.
The 122 points were a season high for the Hornets, who had not scored more than 109 previously this season.
The Pacers (3-4) fell to 0-4 on the road this season.
C.J. Miles led the Pacers with 23 points. Miles Turner and Al Jefferson scored 12 each, and Paul George finished with 10 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
Kidd-Gilchrist and Walker were the catalysts for the first-quarter explosion. Kidd-Gilchrist was a perfect 4 of 4 from the field and 5 of 5 from the free-throw line for 13 points, and Walker was 4 of 5 from the field with two 3-pointers for 10 points.
The Hornets scored 20 points in the first four minutes and led 43-22 at one point before the Pacers scored the last 12 points of the period to make it 43-34 after one quarter. That was the closest the Pacers would get the rest of the night.
Charlotte went on to lead at 75-55 halftime and 99-78 after three quarters.
NOTES: The Hornets opened a three-game homestand. They face Utah on Wednesday and Toronto on Friday. ... Hornets G Kemba Walker came into the game ranked 10th in the NBA in scoring at 24.4 ppg. ... The Pacers were without G Rodney Stuckey (strained hamstring) for the fifth straight game. ... C Roy Hibbert (knee) and G Jeremy Lamb (strained hamstring) remain out for the Hornets. Hibbert missed his fourth straight game and Lamb his third. ... Monday's game was a homecoming for Pacers C Al Jefferson, who spent the last three seasons in Charlotte. ... The Hornets came into the game leading the league in fewest turnovers (11.6 per game) and the Pacers led the NBA in 3-point percentage (.406). ... The Hornets won all three games between the teams last season. The clubs will face each other four times this season. ... The Pacers return home to play Philadelphia on Wednesday.