The Charlotte Hornets were salty after a stalled train forced them to walk off their bus to Wednesday’s play-in game against the Atlanta Hawks.
The perceived lightness was not sufficiently motivating.
The Hawks drove a dominant third quarter to a 132-103 blowout win to eliminate the Hornets and advance to Friday’s play-in game against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The winner of that game gets the number 8 and a date with the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The loser goes to the Hornets in the offseason.
Train melodrama before the game
Before the game, a train blocked the Hornets’ bus at the entrance to State Farm Arena. So they got out and walked the rest of the way. Check out Montrezl Harrell’s Instagram story:
“This is one for the books,” Harrell said. “I’ve never seen that before. Before the game? NBA, we have to do better.”
It is not clear how far they had to walk. But it wasn’t just Hornets players who were upset. So was head coach James Borrego. And he didn’t rule out home side shenanigans ahead of an elimination game.
“In my 20 years, I’ve never seen this train stop,” Borrego told reporters before the game. “I’ve never seen that. I’ve been coming to this arena for 20 years, I’ve never seen a train stop before the game.
“But our boys noticed. Our boys noticed. It’s good fuel. It’s good fuel for us.”
It wasn’t good enough.
Hawks run recklessly
The Hawks controlled the game from the opening lead en route to a 32-23 lead in the first quarter and a 60-52 lead at halftime. But in the third quarter, they put the brackets down. Atlanta beat the Hornets 42-24 in the third game, frustrating the fourth-biggest offense in the league en route to a 29-point win.
Trae Young was one of six Hawks leading by double digits with 24 points and 11 assists. Clint Capela controlled the post with 15 points and 17 rebounds. As a team, the Hawks shot 52.1% from the field and 50% (16 of 32) from 3-point range, despite Young’s 1-of-7 efforts from beyond the arc.
The story goes on
Meanwhile, they kept the Hornets at 37.8% shooting and more than 12 points below their regular-season average of 115.3 points per game. LaMelo Ball’s team-best 26 points and seven assists kept the Hornets nowhere near their Southeast Division rivals.
Bridges ejected, mouthpiece throws into stand
It was a frustrating end to a promising season for the Hornets, with Miles Bridges losing his cool and throwing his mouthpiece in the stands at Hawks fans after being kicked out in the fourth quarter for technical fouls.
He stood by his actions and asked for help to contact the fan he met with the mouthpiece after the game.
The Hornets entered the play-ins on a promising note after ending the regular season on an 11-4 run. Their exertion when they got there couldn’t have been much worse.