He is back and better than ever. Charlotte Hornets LaMelo Ball lit up the Houston Rockets like a Christmas tree in late October.
After coming out on fire and building a seemingly comfortable 18-point lead in the first half, the Rockets came apart at the seams and showed their inexperience an immaturity in the second half of Wednesday’s 110-105 home loss to Charlotte at Toyota Center. It was opening night of the NBA’s 2024-25 regular season for both teams.
The Hornets (21-61) were 20 games worse than the Rockets (41-41) in 2023, and Charlotte played the second half shorthanded without two of their more established starters in Brandon Miller and Mark Williams, who were both sidelined due to injury.
Never the less, the Rockets were outscored by 21 points over the final 24-plus minutes of Wednesday’s game.
Ball looked like a First Team All-NBA player out there doing the heavy lifting, leading the Hornets and was just two rebounds shy of a triple-double, with 34 points, 11 assists, and 8 boards. Ball made a sliver of franchise history becoming the first Hornet ever to achieve 30 points and 10 assists in the team’s opening game. The 23-year-old was doing a little bit of everything and had a refuse to lose attitude as he was locked in on both ends of the court, offensively and defensively. Ball has always possessed that fire in his belly, going back to high school in California, been very competitive, but his competitive nature and spirit in this game was at another level that fans had never seen before, which kept the Hornets afloat when they were down.
Embed from Getty ImagesTre Mann had a big night of his own adding 24 points off the bench. Both guards shot 50% from the field.
With Brandon Miller going out in the second quarter with a hip injury, it provided an opportunity for Mann to eat up those minutes. Mann, without a doubt, took advantage of the playing time, as he collected 24 points and 6 rebounds on 8-16 from the field. Mann turned out to be important down the waning moments as he accumulated nine of his 24 points in the fourth quarter.
Alperen Sengun filled up the stat sheet leading the Rockets with 25 points, 18 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 steals, although he did much of that work in the first half and was quieted in the second half by Grant Williams and a smaller Charlotte lineup. Jalen Green put up a team-high 28 points for Houston, though he was inefficient from the floor, shooting just 9-of-23 (39.1%) and 5-of-15 from distance (33.3%).
“I was just missing shots today [that] normally I’m not missing,” said Sengun, who shot 10-of-22 from the field (45.2%). “I wasn’t my best today.”
“Fred is getting wide open looks,” head coach Ime Udoka said of Fred VanVleet, who went through his own shooting slump. “I don’t think he’s going to go 2-for-11 that often or 4-for-18, so that stands out. And Jalen, even the 5-for-15, the wide-open looks… you make two or three more of those, and they adjust some. You want guys to stay confident and take those shots.”
Overall, the Rockets had a cold night, shooting just 38-of-103 (36.9%), 13-of-43 from 3-point range (30.2%), and they were obliterated on the boards by a commanding 56-43 margin.
“We let go of the rope in the second half,” Udoka said. “Shots aren’t always going to fall, but you can still rely on your defense and continue to play the right way and do the little things, like we did in the first half. Offensive rebounds, and keep them off the glass. It kind of flipped in the second half, they dominated us on the boards, and we didn’t guard.”
Houston resumes its 2024-25 schedule on Friday versus Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies, with tipoff set for 7:00 p.m. Central in another home game from Toyota Center. Veteran center Steven Adams did not play Wednesday due to a nagging left calf injury, and his status for Friday’s game is unknown.
The Hornets continue their road trip down to Atlanta to square off against Trae Young and the Hawks on Friday at 6:30 p.m. at State Farm Arena.
