The Sacramento Kings (22-45) will be at home when they face the Charlotte Hornets (29-37). Action begins at 10:00 pm ET on Friday, Mar. 20 and can be seen on SPSO and CSN-CA.
The Kings are are expecting a better outcome after their 116-105 loss to the Clippers on Wednesday. Rudy Gay was the team’s leading scorer with 23 points. The Hornets, meanwhile, are feeling some disappointment after the 99-92 loss against that same Clippers squad on Tuesday. Mo Williams had a good game for Charlotte, accounting for 18 points, eight assists, and four rebounds.
Keep tabs on Sacramento’s ability to get to the free throw line. They’re ranked first in the NBA in free throw attempt rate (36.6), but Charlotte is among the best in the league at keeping opponents away from the charity stripe (ranking fifth by yielding a free throw attempt rate of 24.4). The Hornets should also expect to protect the ball well. They rank first at avoiding errors (turnover percentage of 11.6%). Conversely, the Kings force the third-fewest turnovers in the league (opponents’ turnover percentage of 12.2%).
This is the second game of the year between these two teams, with the Kings winning the first matchup 113-106. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had a standout performance with 23 points, nine rebounds, two assists, one steal, and two blocks in the loss.
The odds for Sacramento and Charlotte are even, while the Over/Under (O/U) is currently not available. The Kings have gone 22-45 Straight Up (SU) and 25-40-2 Against The Spread (ATS). Over their last 10 games, they have only managed a record of 2-8 ATS. The Kings are one of the best in the NBA in terms of free throw percentage, shooting an impressive .778 from the free throw line.
Over on the other bench, the Hornets have 29-37 SU and 32-32-2 ATS records. Against the Western Conference, Charlotte is 7-20 SU and 11-16 ATS. The Hornets are the better of the two teams when it comes to assist-to-turnover ratio, ranking fourth in the NBA at 1.8. Moving on to Charlotte’s defense, The Hornets allow just 96.9 points per road game, ranking them fourth in the league.
The Kings’ win over Charlotte in their last game wasn’t enough for them to overtake the Hornets in the recent head-to-head series. Their record is now 4-6 SU over the most recent 10 meetings. The teams are even ATS, with a 5-5 record. Sacramento held the edge in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers two times, while Charlotte was never able to do so in their most recent 10 games.
Predictions: SU Winner – CHA, ATS Winner – CHA
Notes
On average, Charlotte scores 94.6 points per game (ranked 28th). Sacramento ranks 29th in points allowed per game with 105.6.
Charlotte scores an average of 94.2 points per away game (ranked 26th). Sacramento ranks 28th in points allowed per home game with 103.2.
When allowing fewer than 100 points, the Hornets are 23-14 on the season. When the Kings score fewer than 100, they are an abysmal 5-24.
At 6-23, the Charlotte Hornets have an underachieving record when their opponents score 100 points or more. The Sacramento Kings are 17-21 when they hit the century mark.
The Hornets have an offensive rating of 97.9 (ranked 29th), while the Kings rank 27th for their defensive rating of 106.3.
Sacramento has an average field goal percentage of 45.1%. Charlotte is a subpar 5-21 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Sacramento Kings rank higher in field goal percentage (15th) than effective field goal percentage (22nd), while the Charlotte Hornets rank the same for both metrics (29th).
The Hornets average 20.6 assists per game (ranked 24th), while the Kings rank last in the league with just 19.9.
The Sacramento Kings average 3.9 blocks per game for a rank of 28th. The Charlotte Hornets rank higher (eighth), earning 5.5 blocks each contest.
Sacramento ranks in the top half of the NBA in offensive rebounding at 13th, while Charlotte ranks near the top of the league (fifth) in defensive rebounding.
The Charlotte Hornets average 5.9 steals per game. When giving up 5 or more steals, the Sacramento Kings have a losing record (18-44) this season.
