The Hornets settled for a 7-1 mark in its preseason games after a 98-86 loss to the Pacers on Oct. 22 at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum despite getting 19 points and 12 boards from Frank Kaminsky.
Cody Zeller finished with 11 points and nine rebounds while Kemba Walker had 12 points to score in double figures in six of his seven preseason games for the Hornets. C.J. Miles was the top scorer for the Pacers with 20 points.
The Hornets were targeting to become the second NBA team in the last five seasons to finish the preseason with a perfect 8-0 record. Nonetheless, the 7-1 mark is still the best preseason finish in franchise history.
The Pacers opened the fourth quarter with a 10-1 run to turn its 70-66 lead at the end of the third to a 13-point advantage.
Unlike in previous games, the Hornets weren't able to counter with fourth quarter heroics and would never threaten the Pacers the rest of the way.
In their game against the Detroit Pistons last Oct. 21, the Hornets used an 18-6 fourth quarter run, with Al Jefferson scoring eight in that stretch to finish 17 points and six rebounds in carving a 99-94 victory to post a 7-0 record.
The Hornets also got big contributions in the Pistons game from Nicolas Batum who had 18 points and 10 rebounds, and Jeremy Lin, who scored 18. Jefferson, Lin, Batum, Jeremy Lamb, Spencer Hawes and Marvin Williams did not take the court against the Pacers.
The ability of other Hornets players to step up -- as shown in the preseason games -- prompted Hornets head coach Steve Clifford to take the offensive focus off of Jefferson. Clifford said he wants the Hornets to distribute its offense more evenly.
The Hornets open their NBA regular season schedule against the Miami Heat on Wednesday, Oct. 28 in Miami.
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