Top-3 Seeded Hornets Venom GT Opening THE TURN vs. Knicks Gaming

By Sam Perley

• #3 Hornets Venom GT (11-5) vs. #14 Knicks Gaming (9-9)
• Thursday, July 15, 2021 at 6 PM EDT (best-of-three)
• NBA 2K League Twitch and YouTube Channels
• Last time out: Hornets Venom won, 73-68, on June 19, 2021

Hornets Venom GT Looking for 2^nd-Straight Quarterfinal Appearance in THE TURN

For the second straight year, Hornets Venom GT earned itself a first-round bye in THE TURN powered by AT&T and will now face the 14^th-seeded Knicks Gaming tonight in a best-of-three series. The winner advances to the Quarterfinals to face the winner of Nets GC and Magic Gaming on Friday evening, while also guaranteeing itself at least $11,700 in the process.

Last year, then seventh-seeded Charlotte knocked off 10^th-seeded Bucks Gaming, 2-1, in the Round of 16 of the 2020 THE TURN before falling to Jazz Gaming, 0-2. At the moment, Hornets Venom GT is led by its backcourt duo of Justin “Sherm” Sherman (22.2 points and 9.5 assists) and CJ “rigby” Burnett (20.8 points and 4.1 assists), neither of whom were on last year’s squad.

🎙Gameday Interviews🎙 @TopTierCrown discusses the team’s preparations and approach as we get ready for THE TURN tonight 👑 pic.twitter.com/hXFmkNWG3C

— Hornets Venom GT (@HornetsVenomGT) July 15, 2021

Knicks Gaming Sweeps Hawks Talon GC in Round 1 of THE TURN

New York closed out its first half of the regular season schedule by sweeping 76ers GC last Saturday night, then took care of Hawks Gaming, 2-0, on Wednesday night. Knicks Gaming scored a combined 52 points in the middle two quarters of Game 1 on its way to an 82-76 victory, then held Atlanta to just 10 fourth-quarter points in Game 2 to escape with a 67-64 triumph.

Opposing Player to Watch: Chris “Duck” Pesos

The reigning 2KL Player of the Week, Duck scored 30+ points in three of his last four regular season outings before notching 31 and 33-point performances in Wednesday night’s sweep over Atlanta. Charlotte held the second-year guard relatively in check during the teams’ 1-1 split back on June 19, allowing just 23.0 points on 50.0% shooting (5-of-18 from three) and 8.5 assists, while also forcing a season-high-tying five turnovers in both contests.