Hornets Beat Wizards in Regular-Season Finale

The NBA regular season concludes on Sunday, with the play-in tournament commencing Tuesday, April 12.

The Charlotte Hornets got a decisive win against the Washington Wizards, 124-108, on Sunday, finishing the season with a record of 43-39, 10 more wins than a year ago.

The Hornets will advance to the play-in tournament as the 10th seed for the second straight year, where they will face Trae Young and the ninth seed Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday. The winner of that contest goes on to play the loser of the Cleveland Cavaliers – Brooklyn Nets game for an opportunity to go up against the top-seeded Miami Heat, in Round 1 of the playoffs.

The Hornets could have improved their seeding up to as high as the seventh position had Brooklyn, Cleveland and Atlanta all dropped their games on Sunday. However, all three teams were victorious in their match-ups, making the Hornets win against the Wizards meaningless in the grand scheme of things.

Charlotte has momentum on their side, going into the tournament on a three-game winning streak. The Hornets are hoping for a better result this time around, after getting blown out in last season’s play-in tournament by the Indiana Pacers, 144-117.

The Hornets had to scratch and claw to win their third consecutive game, getting a late surge from an unexpected source, third string point guard Isaiah Thomas. He scored 14 points, 5-5 from the field, in seven minutes, to stretch the Hornets lead to seven, 89-82, heading into the final frame.

The Hornets had a seven-point advantage through the first few minutes of the quarter before Anthony Gill knocked down a shot from deep, slicing the lead to four. Terry Rozier put his finger prints through the rest of the fourth, hitting back-to-back triples on his way to 10-straight points. Rozier and Ball combined to shoot 11 of 16 from 3-point range. Then Jalen McDaniels joined the party and connected on an outside shot of his own to salt the game away for the Hornets.

Charlotte shot an impressive 53.9% from the field.

The Hornets received some somber news before today’s game. Small forward Gordon Hayward will be out indefinitely with continued discomfort in his left foot. His foot will be placed in a cast to immobilize it and will be re-evaluated in approximately 14 days. The Hornets will miss his veteran leadership and what he can do on both ends of the court.