For the second consecutive year, the Charlotte Hornets closed out their regular season schedule with a double-digit comeback victory in Cleveland on a Sunday afternoon. And though it was another tough injury-plagued campaign, the 120-110 win, at the very least, allowed Head Coach Steve Clifford to end his NBA coaching career on a positive note.

Things weren’t quite as positive for the Cavaliers, who missed out on a chance to clinch a top-three Eastern Conference seed, which sealed a first-round date with the fifth-seeded Orlando Magic in the 4-5 matchup. Charlotte, which played almost entirely reserves, closed the year with wins in three of its final six outings, all of which came against postseason-bound teams.

Cleveland used a 14-0 run and some airtight interior defense to take a 33-24 lead through the opening 12 minutes. The Hornets kept moving the ball and ran just about every chance they got in the second, winning the frame by eight to enter halftime down one. With the East’s second or third seed still very much in play, Cleveland kept its foot on the gas and knocked down 6-of-7 third-quarter 3-point attempts to retake an eight-point advantage with 12 minutes to go.

Down 13 at the 10:09 mark of the fourth following a rare 3-pointer from Cleveland center Damian Jones, Charlotte launched a quick 12-3 run to get back within four. An Isaiah Mobley layup briefly curbed the Hornets’ momentum, which immediately resurfaced with a game-ending 18-2 surge over the final six-and-a-half minutes of play. The visitors forced seven turnovers for 11 ensuing points in the closing quarter, which they won decisively, 32-14 (fewest fourth-quarter points allowed by the Hornets since giving up 13 in Denver on Dec. 23, 2021). 

“I thought those guys had a good attitude,” said Clifford following the win. “One o’clock starts are also always different. Last game of the year, but they put a lot into it, and I was happy for them. These last 25, 30 games, we’re out of it (playoffs) and we had a really difficult schedule. I’m really proud of all of them. They hung in there, the attitude they had, we kept getting better, we practiced well, and we played some good games.”

Nick Smith Jr. (24; career-best 6-of-11 from 3-point range), JT Thor (20; career-high nine rebounds), Marques Bolden (14; career-high four blocks), and Amari Bailey (11) all established new career-high points totals, with Leaky Black (11) tying his. Bryce McGowens had a season-high 18 points, with Tre Mann (11) making it seven Hornet players in double figures. Charlotte shot 50.5%, 47.5% from 3-point range (19-of-40) and dished out a season-high 36 assists.

Said Thor, “I came in thinking we’ve got everything to play for even though we’re not in the playoffs. Young guys got a lot of opportunity today and that’s all that mattered. Coach Clifford has taught us how to be a pro. He refers a lot to the older days and how those guys worked throughout the season. He said the same thing to us before the game and we got the dub.”

Cleveland lost the season series with the Hornets for the first time since 2018-19. Max Strus notched his first-ever NBA triple-double, finishing with 14 points – 4-of-6 from 3-point range – 10 rebounds and a career-high 11 assists before checking out midway through the fourth. Georges Niang had a team-high 16 points off the bench, with big men Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen also scoring 14 for the Cavaliers, who have now dropped three of four with Charlotte.