Snubby Scores Career-High 44 PTS, Hornets Venom GT Falls to Hawks Talon GC

Rookie PG Totals 81 PTS, Charlotte Defense Struggles in Return to Regular Season Play

Hornets Venom GT got a pair of spectacular performances from its leading scorer on Tuesday night, but never found a rhythm on the defensive end in a tough 0-2 loss to Hawks Talon GC.

Trailing 11-7 after a quick restart in Game 1, Hornets Venom was outscored 36-22 overall in the opening frame, falling into an early double-digit hole. Still down by 14 heading into the fourth, Charlotte rallied to get the game within a possession or two in the abbreviated final frame, although simply ran out of time in an eventual 76-73 opening loss.

Guard Justin “Snubby” Stemerman exploded for a career-high 44 points on 18-of-31 shooting and six assists, while forward Alex “Expose” Whelan (11 points) was also in double figures. Guard Michael “BP” Diaz-Cruz led Hawks Talon with 34 points, guard Mykel “Kel” Wilson had 18 points and center Levi “Lee” Lamb notched a double-double with 11 points and 10 boards.

Two BIG performances from @Snubby21 last night!

Career-high 44 PTS in G1, 40.5 PPG and 5.0 APG 🙌🏼 pic.twitter.com/23YDVNkKjC

— Hornets Venom GT (@HornetsVenomGT) July 29, 2020

Game 2 was tightly contested for the first two-and-a-half quarters before a 15-5 run by Hawks Talon to close out the third gave the visitors a seven-point advantage heading into the fourth. Charlotte never got back out in front again, losing 69-60 and falling to 7-5 on the season.

Snubby finished with 37 points and four assists, while guard Gio “Trap” Elizondo added 10 points and center Zaeya “Zae” Ishak had seven points, 11 rebounds and six assists. Kel (23 points), BP (15 points) and Lee (14 points and 13 rebounds) all scored in double figures for Atlanta in the victory.

How did @Snubby21 get through this?!?! 🤔 pic.twitter.com/O1NJ6nFDrB

— Hornets Venom GT (@HornetsVenomGT) July 29, 2020

Hawks Talon shot 61 percent from the field on the night, which included a 58 percent mark on three-point attempts (21-of-36). Charlotte connected on just 57 percent of its tries (17-of-41 from three; 41 percent) and struggled with untimely turnovers, rebounding and limiting Atlanta’s second-chance opportunities for a majority of both contests.

Hornets Venom will return to action tonight, Wednesday, July 29, for a home game against T-Wolves Gaming beginning at 10 PM (rescheduled after being postponed on July 8). Catch the matchup on ESPN2, Twitch.TV/NBA2KLeague or YouTube Gaming.

by Sam Perley