LaMelo Ball scored 31 points and Brandon Miller poured in 29 points in sparking the Charlotte Hornets to a 103-83 comeback victory against the visiting Indiana Pacers on Friday night.
Cody Martin notched 15 points off the bench to help the Hornets bounce back from a 13-point third-quarter deficit to win their second game in a row. Tre Mann had 14 points off the bench as well.
Miller, who scored the winning basket at the buzzer when the Hornets defeated Detroit on Wednesday night, powered the Hornets’ second-half surge. He scored 17 of Charlotte’s 30 points in the third quarter.
Miller finished the night 10-of-17 from the field, including 7-for-11 from beyond the arc. Ball made 10 of 29 shots from the floor, including five 3-pointers.
The Hornets fell behind by as much as 13 in the third quarter but went on a 23-2 run to close the frame. They entered the final quarter with a 74-66 lead and held on for the win. Charlotte outscored Indiana 59-39 in the second half.
Pascal Siakam’s 27 points led the Pacers, who were denied their first three-game winning streak of the season.
Bennedict Mathurin added 22 points and Myles Turner had 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Guard Tyrese Haliburton was held to six points on 2-for-11 shooting.
Charlotte’s bench outscored Indiana’s 37-14 behind Martin and Mann.
The score was tied 44-44 at halftime and the Pacers used an 11-0 run to build a 64-51 lead with just over six minutes left in the third quarter. But Miller drained a trio of threes in an 11-0 spurt and put Charlotte ahead 67-66 with a pair of free throws.
He knocked in another three to close the quarter and give the Hornets an insurmountable lead.
Siakam, now in his second season with Indiana, started hot for the Pacers by making 10 of his first 14 shots from the field, including five threes. But he cooled off from there and finished the night 11-for-17 overall as Indiana made nine shots from beyond the arc compared to Charlotte’s 17.
–Field Level Media
