Brandon Miller poured in 30 points as the Charlotte Hornets built a 50-point lead for the second time this month and cruised past the Philadelphia 76ers 130-93 on Monday afternoon.
All five Charlotte starters scored in double figures, with Kon Knueppel and Moussa Diabate adding 12 points apiece. LaMelo Ball finished with 11 points and Miles Bridges chipped in 10 as the Hornets won three straight games for the first time this season.
After a competitive opening quarter that ended with Charlotte ahead 28-22, the Hornets completely took over. They outscored Philadelphia 81-37 over the next two quarters, storming into the fourth with a commanding 109-59 advantage.
Kelly Oubre Jr. led the 76ers with 17 points, while Jared McCain scored 16 and Quentin Grimes added 14. Tyrese Maxey was limited to a season-low six points on 3-of-12 shooting in 25 minutes, dropping his scoring average to 29.4 points per game.
Charlotte became the first team since the Phoenix Suns in February 2009 to hold leads of 50 points or more in two games during the same calendar month. The Hornets also led Utah by 57 points in a 150-95 victory on Jan. 10. Prior to this stretch, Charlotte had only one such lead in the NBA’s play-by-play era, which dates back to 1996.
The game’s start time was moved to 3 p.m. because of extreme weather conditions in the Charlotte area related to Winter Storm Fern.
Ryan Kalkbrenner contributed 13 points and nine rebounds off the bench for the Hornets. Philadelphia outscored Charlotte 34-21 in the fourth quarter but still suffered its second-worst loss of the season. The 76ers’ largest defeat came in a 41-point loss to Orlando on Nov. 25.
Up next:
The 76ers return home to host Milwaukee on Tuesday, while the Hornets travel to Memphis on Wednesday.
