CHARLOTTE, N.C. _ Charlotte's Eastern Conference playoff hopes were in danger of disappearing after seven straight losses, but the schedule served up a team in more dire straits. The Nets were the last team the Hornets defeated, and the home team got back on the winning side of the ledger on Tuesday night with a 111-107 victory over the Nets, who lost their 10th straight game.
After trailing by 17 at halftime, the Nets battled back to cut their deficit to 109-107 on the second straight 3-pointer by Bojan Bogdanovic with 10 seconds left. But once again, they came up short. One big reason was turnovers: They committed 18 leading to 18 Hornets points, while Charlotte had just seven turnovers for 11 Nets points.
The Hornets (24-28) had seven players in double figures topped by 17 points from Kemba Walker, who shot 4-for-20, and 17 apiece from Nicolas Batum and Marco Belinelli, including the final four clinching foul shots. Bogdanovic led the Nets (9-43) with 22 points, and they got 20 from Brook Lopez plus a double-double from Trevor Booker (10 points, 12 rebounds).
Admittedly still searching for combinations that work in the 52nd game of the season, Nets coach Kenny Atkinson moved Isaiah Whitehead back to the second unit and started Spencer Dinwiddie at point guard. "I do think trust is an issue," Atkinson said. "We have a group that likes each other and cares for each other, but there's another level of trust that we need to get to. We're not there yet."
Despite the lineup shuffle, the Nets' recent offensive struggles and trust and decision-making issues continued unabated. They scored a season-low 37 points in the first half while shooting 31.7 percent and making only four of 15 3-pointers in the half.
The Hornets took control with an early 12-0 run, and the Nets never got closer than nine in the second quarter. A 10-2 run at the end of the half gave the Hornets their biggest lead to that point at 54-37.
The Nets opened the third quarter by making their first five shots and went on to score 35 points in the period. A 22-11 run at the start of the period, including nine points from Lopez and eight from Randy Foye, cut the deficit to six, but they went to the final period trailing, 81-72.
