Hornets win 3rd straight, beat Bulls

[February 21, 2020]    Malik Monk scored 25 points on 7-for-13 shooting off the bench, and the Charlotte Hornets held on for a 103-93 win over the host Chicago Bulls on Thursday night.

Miles Bridges finished with 22 points and eight rebounds, and PJ Washington had 17 points on 6-for-11 shooting. Cody Zeller contributed 16 points and eight rebounds for Charlotte, which has won three games in a row.

Thaddeus Young led the Bulls with 22 points on 10-for-18 shooting. Young also contributed 11 rebounds, four steals and one blocked shot for the Bulls, who lost for the seventh straight game.

Hornets forward PJ Washington (25) goes to the basket against Chicago Bulls forward Luke Kornet (2) during the first half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

Zach LaVine had 19 points for Chicago but shot 8 of 22 overall and 1 of 7 from beyond the arc.

Charlotte re-established a double-digit lead in the first minute of the fourth quarter. Bridges made a jump shot from 10 feet and Zeller added a pair of rebounds to put the Hornets ahead 83-73 with 11:17 to go.

The Bulls pulled within 92-85 with 5:48 to go after Young made a basket. The Hornets lost the ball on the next possession, but then Bridges picked off a pass from Young, which led to a sequence that ended with two free throws from Jalen McDaniels to make it 94-85 with 4:43 left.

Monk buried a 3-pointer less than a minute later to boost Charlotte's lead to 97-85.

The Bulls trimmed the deficit to six points entering the fourth quarter. A basket by Shaquille Harrison brought Chicago within 76-73 with 1:12 remaining in the third quarter, but Charlotte finished the frame with a free throw by Terry Rozier and a slam dunk by Zeller.

The Hornets led 60-44 at the half. Charlotte shot 52.4 percent (22 of 42) before the break, compared with 36 percent (18 of 50) for Chicago. The Bulls missed all 15 of their attempts from beyond the 3-point line in the first half.

Charlotte jumped to a 33-20 lead at the end of the first quarter. Monk had 11 points in the first 12 minutes.

Bulls forward Wendell Carter Jr. remained sidelined because of a high-ankle sprain. Carter, who has not played since Jan. 6, had hoped to return Thursday.

--Field Level Media

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