Shorthanded Charlotte Hornets fall to Oklahoma City Thunder

The shorthanded Charlotte Hornets are still without a defensive identity as they struggle through a tough stretch of their season -- one that continues with a four-game west coast road swing after Saturday’s 109-90 loss against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Time Warner Cable Arena.

“It takes focus, it takes being locked in,” said point guard Kemba Walker, whose 32 points weren’t enough to keep the Hornets close to the Thunder (24-10). “We’re missing a lot of things that are really hurting us. We’ve got to fix it and fix it really fast.”

In losing for a sixth time in eight games, the Hornets (17-16) again allowed an opponent to get off to a fast start. This time, the Thunder jumped to an early 16-point lead and shot 52.6 percent in the first half (50 percent from 3-point range). It was too much to overcome, although the Hornets cut a 12-point halftime deficit to two points early in the third quarter.

“The reality is, since Christmas, we’ve just really lost our way defensively,” said Hornets coach Steve Clifford, whose team opens the road trip against the Golden State Warriors on Monday. “Our energy level is good. It’s just our defense and rebounding. When we start to get our defense going again, then we’ll win again. You can’t be giving up 109 a night and play well consistently.”

The Hornets played without forward Nicolas Batum (toe) and center Al Jefferson (knee). Backup center Spencer Hawes (who missed the previous three games with lower back pain) didn’t play, but was available had he been needed. Guard Jeremy Lin, who missed two games with an ankle injury, returned and scored 12 points.

Three who mattered

Kevin Durant: Thunder’s star forward scored 29 points on 8-of-13 shooting and added 11 rebounds.

Kemba Walker: With Jefferson and Batum out – now both at the same time – Walker continues to carry the scoring load for Charlotte, with 32. It was his fifth 30-plus point game of the season, a career high.

Russell Westbrook: So-so numbers for him, his 16 points were 10 below his average and seven assists below his 9.4 average.

Observations

▪  Oklahoma City center Serge Ibaka scored 10 points in the first half – on 10-for-10 shooting from the free-throw line.

▪  Thunder guard Anthony Morrow, a Charlotte Latin product, entered the game averaging 5.6 points and 1.1 rebounds. Morrow really helped Oklahoma City in the first half, coming off the bench to hit two 3-pointers. He finished with 12 points, making 4-of-8 3-pointers.

▪  Defense was again optional for the Hornets in the first half. The Thunder shot 52.6 percent and made 50 percent of its 3-pointers.

▪  The Thunder blocked 15 shots, a season high for the Hornets.

Worth mentioning

▪  Batum had been playing on a sore toe for a few games and it finally caught up to him. Batum missed the game after having an MRI earlier Saturday.

“He’s just really sore,” said Clifford. “His toe doesn’t look good. It’s swollen, discolored and he just hasn’t felt comfortable on the floor. He’s actually played two pretty good games, but he’s not 100 percent out there.”

▪  Walker moved into seventh place on the Hornets career scoring list during the game, passing David Wesley (5,241).

They said it

“We played some defense in the third quarter more like we’re capable of.” – Clifford.

“They (missed) Batum, who’s a terrific scorer and terrific passer and a creator.” – Thunder coach Billy Donovan.

“Once again, we have to be more aggressive attacking the ball from the beginning. We’ve just got to do it.” – Walker.

Report card

D OFFENSE: Made 34.5 percent from the field and only corralled seven offensive rebounds. Not a recipe for success.

D- DEFENSE: Tightened up in the second half, particularly in the third quarter, but by then it was too late.

C- COACHING: Clifford said he needs to find some time during shootarounds -- there’s little time to practice this time of year -- to shore up the team’s defensive deficiencies.

This story was originally published January 2, 2016 at 9:51 PM with the headline "Shorthanded Charlotte Hornets fall to Oklahoma City Thunder."