Kemba, Hornets crush Knicks at MSG

[December 10, 2018]  Kemba Walker scored 25 points before sitting out the entire fourth quarter and the Charlotte Hornets rolled to an easy 119-107 victory over the host New York Knicks on Sunday night.

Walker, a native New Yorker, turned his only scheduled appearance in Madison Square Garden this season into another great performance. He finished 8 of 20 from the field, hit four 3-pointers, and added six rebounds, six assists and four steals.

The Hornets (13-13) won their second straight, following up an impressive home win over Denver on Friday night.

They never trailed and led by as many as 28 in the third quarter. It was their first wire-to-wire win of the season.

The Hornets also got 19 points from Jeremy Lamb, 16 points from Tony Parker, 13 points from Marvin Williams and 12 points from Cody Zeller. They shot 48.3 percent from the field and were 23 of 27 from the free-throw line (85.2 percent).

Kevin Knox led the Knicks with 26 points off the bench. The Knicks also got 21 points from Tim Hardaway Jr. and 18 from Frank Ntilikina. They lost Coach David Fizdale when Fizdale was ejected midway through the fourth quarter for arguing with the officials.

The Knicks (8-20) have now lost four straight.

Hornets guard Kemba Walker (15) controls the ball against the New York Knicks in the first quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Catalina Fragoso-USA TODAY Sports

Charlotte led 27-24 after one quarter, then led by as many as 18 in the second quarter before settling for a 61-47 halftime lead. The Hornets then opened the third quarter with a 16-2 run to make it 77-49. Charlotte eventually led 99-78 after three quarters.

The Hornets will be off until Wednesday when they will host Detroit. The Knicks, who were coming off a loss to Brooklyn on Saturday, will also be idle until Wednesday when they travel to Cleveland.

--Field Level Media

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