Pelicans' balanced attack enough to hold off Hornets

Field Level Media|published: Sun 30th March, 21:47 2025

NBA: Charlotte Hornets at New Orleans Pelicans

Mar 30, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Kelly Olynyk (13) shoots against Charlotte Hornets center Jusuf Nurkic (11) and guard DaQuan Jeffries (3) during the first half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

Keion Brooks Jr. scored 17 points to lead a balanced scoring effort and the host New Orleans Pelicans defeated the Charlotte Hornets 98-94 on Sunday night.

Antonio Reeves scored 16, Kelly Olynyk had 13, Jose Alvarado and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl had 12 apiece and Karlo Matkovic added 10.

The Pelicans (21-54) played without head coach Willie Green, who missed the game because of personal reasons, and assistant James Borrego, a former Charlotte head coach, filled in.

Miles Bridges scored 20, Nick Smith Jr. had 19 and Jusuf Nurkic added 13 points and 12 rebounds for the Hornets (18-56), who lost their fifth straight.

Charlotte had grabbed a one-point lead in the final minute, but Alvarado's three-point play put the Pelicans up 96-94 and Charlotte turned the ball over before Alvarado fed Brooks for a layup to ice the game.

Reeves made three straight 3-pointers to start the Pelicans' third-quarter scoring and pull them within 54-52. Nurkic scored seven points to help the Hornets extend the lead to 10 points. Brooks scored five points, including a 3-pointer that pulled New Orleans within one, but Charlotte pushed the lead to five.

Lester Quinones made a 3-pointer and Brooks converted a three-point play for the Pelicans to take a three-point lead before Wendell Moore Jr. beat the buzzer with a tip-in that pulled the Hornets within 74-73 at the end of the third quarter.

Charlotte tied the score twice before Yves Missi made a layup and Reeves followed with a 3-pointer to give New Orleans an 86-81 lead. KJ Simpson answered with a 3-pointer and the Hornets got within one on three occasions before Smith hit a long 3-pointer to give Charlotte a 94-93 lead with 40 seconds left.

Bridges scored seven points, nine teammates scored two each and Charlotte led 25-21 at the end of the period.

The Pelicans cored the first five points of the second quarter to take their only lead of the half. Bridges scored five points during a 15-4 run that gave the Hornets a 40-30 lead. They extended the lead to a high of 13 points before taking a 52-43 lead into halftime.

--Field Level Media