CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Cam Thomas scored 33 points, and the Brooklyn Nets built a 21-point, first-quarter lead and held on to defeat the Charlotte Hornets 133-121 on Monday night for their first win of the season.
Mikal Bridges had 24 points and Lonnie Walker IV and Dorian Finney-Smith each had added 19 for the Nets, who shot 56.3% from the field and scored 42 points in the first period.
Terry Rozier had 23 points and rookie Brandon Miller added a career-high 22 points and nine rebounds for the Hornets. Miller, the No. 2 pick in the draft, is averaging 17.3 points in his first three games with the Hornets.
The Nets played without Cam Johnson (calf strain) and Nic Claxton (ankle sprain), forcing them to go to a small lineup, but that didn’t stop them from dominating the Hornets early.
The Hornets’ 1-on-1 defense was routinely exposed, as they were unable to defend drives by Thomas, Bridges, Finney-Smith and Walker. LaMelo Ball struggled to cover his man and spent most of the game in foul trouble before fouling out.
Brooklyn came out of the gates fast, hitting its first eight shots. The Nets led 42-23 after the first quarter after shooting 62.1% from the floor and dominating the glass against the taller Hornets.
Miller is the only reason the Hornets remained in the game in the first half. The rookie had 16 points before the break and pinned a shot against the backboard on defense, bringing the home crowd to its feet.
NOTES
IN-SEASON TOURNAMENT: The NBA’s in-season tournament will feature new court designs.
All 30 teams, when playing home games in the tournament that starts Friday and runs through Dec. 9, will have a primarily solid-color court on the floor of their arena. The courts will be fully painted, with no visible woodgrain.
The league first released the designs to ESPN, one of its broadcast partners, on Monday before releasing the list publicly. The league did not say what the cost of the project was.
The courts all largely follow the same design scheme, with the NBA Cup – the tournament’s trophy – displayed both at midcourt and in the lanes, a 16-foot-wide runway in a contrasting color down the center of the floor and team names on the baseline.
It will mark the first time that Boston, Chicago, the Los Angeles Lakers, Portland and New Orleans play on an alternate home court, the league said.
Tinkering with court designs is not a new concept. Most notably, FIBA – the sport’s international governing body – approved glass floors for play in top competitions last year.
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