Kyle Kuzma pumped in 33 points and the visiting Washington Wizards snapped a four-game losing streak with some huge offensive bursts that led to a 132-116 victory against the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday night.
Danilo Gallinari and Delon Wright paced Washington’s bench scoring with 18 points apiece, followed by fellow reserves Landry Shamet (15) and Corey Kispert (12). Starter Jordan Poole added 11.
LaMelo Ball led the Hornets with 34 points and seven assists. Gordon Hayward added 18 points, while P.J. Washington and Mark Williams each had 14 and Brandon Miller posted 13.
Washington’s reserves outscored the Hornets’ backups 72-23. Kuzma, a starter who logged 31 minutes, grabbed a team-high nine rebounds.
The Hornets had some numbers — 51.9 percent shooting from the field and 35 free-throw attempts — that might have suggested a different result. Ball, who was charged with six turnovers, made three 3-pointers in nine attempts, while the rest of the team was 5-for-16 from deep.
The Wizards had such good ball movement at times that the Charlotte defense couldn’t keep up. Washington led 103-84 after three quarters, scoring 79 points in the second and third quarters combined.
The Hornets surged in the third quarter, and after they pulled within nine points with 3:23 left, Washington went on a 15-2 run, with Shamet supplying a pair of 3-pointers and a dunk in the burst.
Charlotte led 29-24 after the first quarter. The Wizards outscored the hosts 41-17 in the second, with three 3-pointers in the first 73 seconds of the quarter. Gallinari hit two and Bilal Coulibaly had the other.
The Hornets had only three field goals in the first 10 minutes of the second quarter.
Washington’s 65-46 halftime lead was sparked by Kuzma’s 20 points and the Wizards’ 10 baskets from 3-point range. Kuzma had four of the treys. The Hornets were 4-for-14 from beyond the arc at the break with 41.9 percent shooting from the field.
–Field Level Media
