FILE – Kelly Oubre Jr. #12 of the Charlotte Hornets reacts following a missed shot attempt at the end of the second quarter of the game against the Philadelphia 76ers at Spectrum Center on November 23, 2022 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images/AFP
Kelly Oubre Jr. scored 28 points and the Charlotte Hornets used a strong second half to overcome the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves for a 110-108 victory Friday.
Terry Rozier’s 22 points, PJ Washington’s 16 points and reserve Theo Maledon’s 14 points also gave the Hornets a boost as they won back-to-back games for the first time this season.
Anthony Edwards poured in 25 points to lead the Timberwolves, who had a five-game winning streak snapped. D’Angelo Russell had 20 points, Karl-Anthony Towns supplied 19 points and Rudy Gobert had 17 points and 17 rebounds.
17 PTS in the first half for Kelly 🤑@KELLYOUBREJR | @drpepper pic.twitter.com/HnNezBSvGp
— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) November 25, 2022
Oubre, who is usually a major 3-point threat, was 10 for 21 from the field overall and 3 for 7 on 3s.
Charlotte shot just 32 percent (8 for 25) on 3-pointers and missed 10 free throws. Washington’s foul shot with 4.7 seconds left helped clinch the outcome.
The Hornets used a huge third quarter to wipe out a double-digit deficit. They outscored Minnesota 39-21 in the quarter, a major development for a team that has frequently had difficulty stringing together consistent offense.
Eric Collins calling Kai's dunks is fr our spirit animal (volume up 🔊)@242_jones | @drpepper | @HornetsOnBally pic.twitter.com/9B0N93IRMZ
— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) November 26, 2022
Charlotte has had trouble against teams with productive post players. The combination of centers Mason Plumlee and Nick Richards managed five points for the Hornets against the likes of Gobert and Towns.
Minnesota led 62-52 at halftime on the strength of 47.8 percent shooting from the field and 13-for-13 marksmanship at the free-throw line.
Oubre had 17 points for Charlotte before halftime, with the rest of the team’s starters combining for 22 points.
Towns and Edwards both scored 12 first-quarter points as the Timberwolves led 34-29. At that point, the Hornets had shot 50 percent from the field, but were hurt by a 15-7 rebounding deficit.
A 10-2 spurt to begin the second quarter put the Timberwolves further in control as the Hornets went 1 for 6 from the field to start the quarter.
The Hornets remain without point guard LaMelo Ball, who has played in three games and just once at home this season.