Hornets put focus on ball retention against Wizards

The Charlotte Hornets have lots of areas to fix in a short timeframe. After losing Monday night, they return home for a Tuesday night game against the Washington Wizards.

The Hornets fell 139-132 to the host Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday despite LaMelo Ball's 23 points, including six 3-pointers. While the Hornets connected on 21 shots from 3-point range, the Cavaliers bagged 24 shots from beyond the arc.

Even with a patchwork lineup in some areas, the Hornets might not be overly taxed despite having games on back-to-back nights.

"I think our minutes were in a decent spot," Charlotte coach Charles Lee said. "As we board the plane and head back home, we got to think about how we take care of the ball a little bit better to allow ourselves to have the best opportunity."

Charlotte's 20 turnovers in Cleveland were troublesome, with the Cavaliers collecting 31 points off those miscues.

Only Kon Knueppel and Miles Bridges reached the 30-minute mark for Charlotte, but Ball might not be in position to play on back-to-back days given his recent string of injuries.

The setback was Charlotte's second in a row and fourth in six games.

The Wizards have won two of their past four games, with both victories coming on the road. Most recently, they lost 124-113 at home against the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday.

Even with some recent success, Washington has allowed at least 119 points in nine of its past 10 games.

Part of the key for the Wizards could be the availability of Marvin Bagley III (sore left calf) and Bilal Coulibaly (sprained left ankle), who were out on Sunday. Both were listed as questionable for Tuesday.

Bagley, who is averaging 10 points per game this season, is contributing 14.1 points per contest this month. Coulibaly has started all 13 games he has played in the 2025-26 campaign, chips in with 8.4 points per game.

Bub Carrington has led or co-led Washington in scoring in two of the last five games, but he averages just 8.9 points per game.

The Wizards have seen an uptick offensively from Tre Johnson, a rookie guard who matched his season high with 19 points Sunday.

"He's just getting used to playing with his teammates," Washington coach Brian Keefe said. "These are his first few games back coming off an injury. It's just getting his rhythm. We're finding him in the (right) spots. ... That's what this guy does. He can score."

Johnson's comfort level has risen.

"I feel like I'm constantly improving," Johnson said. "The biggest thing for me is trying to figure out my role."

The Wizards are 3-12 in road games, but that's one more victory than they have at home.

The Hornets aren't likely to have center Mason Plumlee available on Tuesday. He made a rare start Monday, but he was helped off the court in the third quarter due to right groin soreness and didn't return. He wound up with five points and five rebounds in 10 minutes.

That could put Charlotte in a bind because center Ryan Kalkbrenner sat out because of sprained left elbow and guard Collin Sexton missed the game with a left quadriceps strain.

Charlotte beat the Wizards 139-113 in on Oct. 26 in Washington, scoring 88 second-half points. Ball had 38 points that night as four Hornets reached the 20-point mark. CJ McCollum's 24 points and Sarr's 23 points led the Wizards.

--Field Level Media