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Charlotte Hornets vs Brooklyn Nets recap: final score and what we learned (Week of Nov 5–11, 2026)

NBA Audit · Week of Nov 5–11, 2026 · Game recap

The Brooklyn Nets needed this one, and they got it. They beat the Charlotte Hornets 114-104 at home, a 10-point win for a team that came in 1-6 over its recent games and badly wanted a reason to exhale. One win doesn't erase a slump. It does change the mood around a team that was starting to look like a problem.

The result

The story is shooting. Brooklyn hit 40 of 79 from the field, 51 percent, and 14 of 37 from three, 38 percent. Charlotte made 31 of 77, 40 percent, and just 12 of 40 from deep, 30 percent. Both teams took a lot of threes, and only one of them got paid for it.

Charlotte's route back was everything else. The Hornets shot 30 of 36 at the line, 83 percent, against Brooklyn's 20 of 28, 71 percent. They also won the glass, 41 rebounds to 38, including 11 offensive boards to Brooklyn's 5. The Nets were whistled for 34 fouls to Charlotte's 29, which fits that trip-heavy line. The Hornets found ways to extend possessions and get to the stripe. They just couldn't make enough shots in the normal course of play to turn it into a win.

Brooklyn's 25 assists to Charlotte's 20 tell a quieter story. The Nets' offense looked organized, and the ball moved on the way to a 51 percent night. They also finished with 8 steals to 6.

How our preview held up

Our pick was the Brooklyn Nets, and it was right. The case was simple: Brooklyn had the better scoring profile, and Charlotte's offense had been stuck in the mud. The shooting split backs that up. A 40 percent night from the field is what a struggling offense looks like.

The preview also flagged a caution, that Brooklyn's defense could keep things closer than the scoring numbers suggested. That was fair, and Charlotte did put up 104, well above its season scoring rate. But the free throws did most of that work, not efficient shot-making.

We also said Charlotte's best hope was winning the rebounding battle. The Hornets did exactly that, and it still wasn't enough. That's the part I'd underline. The Hornets did the thing they needed to do and lost anyway, because the shots weren't falling.

I won't claim credit for anything about individual performances. Nothing in our information covers how any single player did, so the individual matchups we highlighted stay unresolved.

What it means

For Brooklyn, this is a start, not a turnaround. The efficiency was real, but the defensive questions from the preview haven't gone away. Giving Charlotte 36 free throw attempts and 11 offensive rebounds is the kind of leakage a better team would punish. Still, winning while carrying those flaws beats the alternative, and the Nets get to feel something other than pressure for a day.

For Charlotte, the picture is more worrying. The Hornets entered with the better recent record, but the underlying profile was shaky, and this game fit it. Making 12 of 40 threes while living at the line isn't a sustainable way to score. If the shooting doesn't improve, the 3-5 record will start to catch up with the quality of the offense.

The next question for both teams is whether this result repeats. Brooklyn has to show the shooting wasn't a one-night event. Charlotte has to show that winning the rebounding fight can translate into wins.

Read our pre-game preview: Charlotte Hornets vs Brooklyn Nets prediction and preview: team news, form and key matchups (Nov 4)

Final score

Team stats

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Data attribution: Stats for informational analysis only. Verify figures against official league sources.