Miles Bridges scored 20 points and rookie center Ryan Kalkbrenner made all eight of his shots from the field as the Charlotte Hornets defeated the visiting Milwaukee Bucks 111-100 on Wednesday night.
Kalkbrenner finished with 17 points and nine rebounds, Collin Sexton provided 16 points and eight assists and Kon Knueppel bagged three 3-pointers on the way to 16 points as Charlotte snapped a three-game losing streak and won for just the second time in an eight-game stretch. Tre Mann (13 points) and Pat Connaughton (11) provided boosts off the bench.
Ryan Rollins pumped in 25 points, Myles Turner had 21 points and Bobby Portis added 14 points for Milwaukee, which shot 45.5% from the field. The Bucks suffered their first defeat by a double-digit margin this season, playing without scoring leader Giannis Antetokounmpo, who has a knee ailment.
Moussa Diabate pulled in 13 rebounds as part of Charlotte’s 49-34 advantage on the boards.
Charlotte went on a 16-6 run to begin the second half, extending its lead to 75-56 and causing the Bucks to call time-out after Mann’s 3-point bucket. The Bucks followed with the next nine points, with the Hornets using a time-out.
Neither team scored in the final two minutes of the third quarter, leaving Charlotte up 83-72.
The fourth quarter began similar to the third quarter with the Hornets excelling. Sexton posted the final five points of a 9-2 burst for Charlotte.
The Hornets led 59-50 at halftime, boosted by eight 3-point baskets and an 11-2 scoring edge on free throws.
Charlotte didn’t have a double-figure scorer in the first half, though three players reached nine and two others had eight.
Turner and Rollins both had 16 points at the half, but the Bucks had shot 42.9% from the field.
Antetokounmpo, a two-time NBA MVP, had been questionable for Monday’s game at Dallas before scoring 30 points.
The teams meet in a rematch Friday in Milwaukee.
