The Charlotte Hornets responded in Game 3 with a convincing 96-80 win over the Miami Heat. Charlotte had gotten blown out by Miami in its first two games by a combined 44 points, with both meetings taking place in Miami. This time, the Hornets used its home court advantage to slowly tack onto a start-to-finish game.
In the game’s first few minutes, the Heat played stellar once again. Luol Deng continued his hot shooting, opening the game 4 of 4 from behind the arc. As Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel noted, it’s nothing the Hornets haven’t seen before:
Heat shooting 70 percent, basically their average for the series.
— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) April 23, 2016
Eventually, the “white hot” Miami Heat cooled off, ultimately losing its last three quarters 67-52.
The third quarter was especially telling. Hornets rookie forward Frank Kaminsky (15 points) started things off for the Hornets, scoring 13 points in the third period alone. Hornets coach Steve Clifford was asked on Kaminsky after the game, and his response was simply outstanding:
“When you got two Hall of Famers telling you to post Frank up, hell, s***. You gotta post Frank up!”
Kaminsky, joined by others, helped start a 18-0 run in Charlotte’s favor. Jeremy Lin’s three pointer added to this run, also making the Time Warner Cable roof explode in the process:
LINSANITY BACK. They’re going Linsane at #BuzzCity! #HEATvHORNETS#Hornetshttps://t.co/4OgbmambLk
— NBA On Def Pen (@NBAOnDefPen) April 23, 2016
As Manny Navarro of the Miami Herald noted, the Heat’s third quarter was eerily similar to their third-quarter collapse against Boston last week:
#Heat having one of those Boston moments here in the 3rd quarter
— Manny Navarro (@Manny_Navarro) April 23, 2016
Just how bad was it? NBA TV examined Charlotte’s absurd run:
The @hornets went off in the 3rd! ? pic.twitter.com/nX5oW6tLZ4
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 24, 2016
For the Hornets, its bench made the biggest difference. Jeremy Lin and Cody Zeller combined for 30, outscoring Miami’s bench by 17 points. For Miami, impressive rookies Justise Winslow and Josh Richardson combined to shoot 1-12 on the night.
Aside from Lin and Zeller, Hornets forward Marvin Williams quietly had a impactful night as well. Williams finished with 14 rebounds and this highlight dunk in the second quarter:
His Airness approves! https://t.co/ULZa3vSAVd
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) April 23, 2016
As for the Heat, Hassan Whiteside continued to impress. Whiteside finished with 13 points, 18 rebounds, 4 blocks, and this highlight rejection on Kemba Walker’s layup:
Hassan Whiteside with the swat on Kemba Walker! #HeatNationhttps://t.co/Qiei80DQnf
— NBA On Def Pen (@NBAOnDefPen) April 23, 2016
Charlotte Hornets head coach Steve Clifford opted to go big, starting Al Jefferson and Frank Kaminsky in tonight’s win. In the end, the risk paid off as the bigger Hornets defeated the smaller Heat in a must-win game for Charlotte. Overall, the Heat shot just 34% from the field. While Charlotte only shot 39% in contrast, they also committed 11 fewer turnovers on the night as well.
With the win tonight, the Hornets won their first Playoff game since 2002. Should the Hornets have lost tonight, they would’ve joined the New York Knicks for most consecutive Playoff losses in NBA History (13).
The Hornets will host the Heat in Game 4 Monday, 7:00 EST on NBA TV, where they hope to tie the series 2-2.
Game 3 Star Player: Jeremy Lin (18 points, 2-3 from deep off the bench in 26 minutes).
