LaMelo Ball got both the victory in the personal battle with Lonzo on Friday and the victory in the win column. In fact, LaMelo finished just one assist shy of a historic triple-double that would have seen him become the youngest to ever do so.
Instead, he finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists as the Hornets overcame an 18-point first-half deficit with a 71-point second half to win 118-110 on the night.
Neither Lonzo nor LaMelo was efficient on the night shooting the basketball. LaMelo finished 4-of-11 from the field and 1-of-5 on 3-pointers while Lonzo was 2-of-8 overall and 1-of-7 from beyond the arc.
However, Lonzo finished with just three assists and two rebounds and had a plus-minus of -7 in 37 minutes while LaMelo was +5 in his 26 minutes off the bench.
Gordon Hayward of Charlotte and Zion Williamson of New Orleans shared game-high scoring honors with 26 points apiece.
