Hornets Crush Pacers, Boost Playoff Hopes

0:00It's April 4th. Welcome in. This is Charlotte Hornets News today, where team coverage meets A.I. Hornets forward. Brandon Miller dropped 22 points to lead Charlotte to a 129-100A blowout over the Pacers. Friday night at Spectrum Center, Rookie con Nupel added 20, Miles Bridges 19, and Lamello Ball 18 with 9 assists. Charlotte improved to 42 and 36, grabbing 8th in the East, just one game behind Orlando for 7th. Pacers slipped to 18 and 59, holding the second worst record league wide after snapping a brief two-game win streak. Indiana fought back some after a rough start, but Charlotte's hot shooting kept them at bay all night. That first quarter set the tone, with the Hornets unleashing a 24-2 run that buried Indy early. Charlotte hit 7-14 from deep, scoring 38 points to the Pacers 25, creating a whole two deep to climb out of. From there, the Hornets drained 24-3s on 49 tries, way above their league-leading average.

1:03Multiple guys stepped up. Lamello with 5, Miller 4, while Pascal Ciacum led Indy with 30 points, despite missing key teammates to injuries. Ciacum balled out near the rim, but exited late with a lower back bruise that could sideline him Sunday in Cleveland. This loss keeps the Pacers locked in prime lottery spot, as the Hornets keep pushing toward the playoffs.