Preview: Hornets at Bulls

[November 13, 2015]  The Charlotte Hornets got off to an 0-3 start and looked terrible on offense before breaking out in a 130-105 demolition of the Chicago Bulls on Nov. 3. The Hornets have won four of their last five games beginning with that triumph and will attempt to victimize the Bulls again when they visit Chicago on Friday.

One key to Charlotte’s recent surge has been the boost off the bench provided by guards Jeremy Lin and Jeremy Lamb. The two combined for 31 points on 13-of-21 shooting before fellow reserve Cody Zeller hit the game-winner in Wednesday’s 95-93 win over the New York Knicks and are picking up the slack while Kemba Walker and Al Jefferson struggle. The Bulls have won two of three since the loss to the Hornets and have been off since rolling past Philadelphia 111-88 on Monday. Nikola Mirotic broke out of a slump with 20 points and 10 rebounds in the win after just barely hanging onto his starting spot.

TV: 8 p.m. ET, FSN Southeast (Charlotte), CSN Chicago

ABOUT THE HORNETS (4-4): The two Jeremys combined for 35 points on 13-of-18 shooting in the win over the Bulls and are averaging a combined 28.4 points over the last five games. Those two and Zeller combined for nearly as many minutes (70) on Wednesday as starters P.J. Hairston, Walker and Jefferson (76), who shot 6-of-29 from the field. Jefferson is averaging 8.7 points in the last three games while Walker is 6-of-23 from the field in the last two and Hairston has been held to five points or fewer in each of the last four contests.

ABOUT THE BULLS (5-3): Mirotic was expected to head to the bench with Joakim Noah drawing his first start of the season before Noah (left knee soreness) decided he could not play minutes before the game due to knee soreness. "I wasn't expecting it,” Noah told reporters. "I've been feeling great up to this point, and it just happened. I don't think it's too serious, but it was definitely a situation where I had to be smart. I wanted to play (Monday) really bad." Noah has been limited at practice this week but is hopeful of playing on Friday.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Bulls G Kirk Hinrich (toe) sat out the last four games and is questionable to return on Friday.

2. Lamb is leading the Hornets in field-goal percentage (58.8) and is shooting 46.2 percent from 3-point range.

3. Charlotte has taken three of the last four meetings but Chicago won the last matchup at home, 98-86 on Mar. 23.

PREDICTION: Bulls 102, Hornets 96

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