If you’re searching for atlanta hawks vs charlotte hornets match player stats from their November 23, 2025 meeting at State Farm Arena, you probably already know the final score was close. What the score alone doesn’t tell you is that this game had 15 lead changes, a rookie who set a franchise scoring record for three-pointers, and a final possession that came down to a stolen ball and a missed buzzer-beater. Atlanta won 113-110, but almost every number in this box score explains why it wasn’t a comfortable win.

This breakdown walks through who carried each team, how the game actually swung, and which stats mattered more than the final score suggests.

Final Score and Game Snapshot

Atlanta beat Charlotte 113-110 at home, improving to 11-7 on the season and winning for the seventh time in nine games. Charlotte fell to 4-13, extending its losing streak to six games.

Charlotte actually out-rebounded Atlanta and made more three-pointers. On the surface, that sounds like a winning formula. It wasn’t enough, mostly because Atlanta shot better overall, protected the ball far better, and dominated the paint and transition game.

How the Game Unfolded

This was not a game Atlanta controlled wire to wire. Charlotte actually won the second quarter 30-25 to take a real lead into halftime, and the two teams traded the advantage back and forth all night, with 15 lead changes and eight ties by the final buzzer.

The turning point came late in the third quarter. Mouhamed Gueye, a reserve big man, sparked a stretch that included a dunk assisted by Jalen Johnson, a blocked shot on Collin Sexton, and a driving basket early in the fourth quarter. That sequence fueled a 16-2 Atlanta run spanning the end of the third and start of the fourth, and it gave the Hawks the separation they needed heading into the closing minutes.

Charlotte never folded, though. The Hornets clawed back into it behind Kon Knueppel, whose three-pointer with 3:15 left put Charlotte ahead 110-107. Atlanta answered with a Jalen Johnson turnaround jumper to cut it to one, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker gave the Hawks the lead back with a driving layup at 1:42.

The final possession was the most dramatic stretch of the night. With Atlanta clinging to a 112-110 lead and 11 seconds left, Alexander-Walker stripped Knueppel on a drive to the basket and was immediately fouled. He made 1 of 2 free throws to push the lead to three. Charlotte got one last look at a game-tying three-pointer, but Miles Bridges’ attempt sailed well off the mark under heavy defensive pressure as time expired.

Atlanta Player Performances

Jalen Johnson’s Complete Game

Johnson finished with 28 points, 11 assists, and 8 rebounds, tying Knueppel for the game-high scoring total while also leading all players in assists. The performance extended a personal streak: Johnson has now put together eight straight games with at least 15 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists, a new franchise record.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker’s Second-Leading Effort

Alexander-Walker scored 23 points and grabbed 5 rebounds, and his fingerprints were all over the final minute. He hit the go-ahead layup with under two minutes left, then made the defensive play of the game by stripping Knueppel on Charlotte’s last possession.

Dyson Daniels’ All-Around Impact

Daniels put up 22 points and a team-high 9 rebounds, providing scoring and rebounding from multiple spots on the floor throughout the fourth quarter.

Onyeka Okongwu Rounds Out a Balanced Attack

Okongwu added 20 points, giving Atlanta four players in double figures with at least 20 points each. That kind of scoring balance made it difficult for Charlotte to focus its defense on any single Hawk.

Mouhamed Gueye’s Spark Off the Bench

Gueye wasn’t among Atlanta’s top scorers, but his third-quarter stretch, a dunk, a block on Sexton, and a driving basket, was the catalyst for the run that put Atlanta in control.

Charlotte Player Performances

Kon Knueppel Sets a Franchise Rookie Mark

Knueppel led Charlotte with 28 points and set a Hornets rookie record with seven made three-pointers. He entered the game as the league’s leading rookie scorer at 18.8 points per game and had shot better than 40% from three in six consecutive games. His late three-pointer briefly put Charlotte back in front in the final minutes.

Collin Sexton’s Secondary Scoring

Sexton added 22 points, giving Charlotte a second reliable scoring option alongside Knueppel throughout the night.

Miles Bridges Contributes 21

Bridges finished with 21 points and was involved in the game’s final sequence, missing the potential game-tying three at the buzzer.

Why the Rebounding Edge Wasn’t Enough for Charlotte

Charlotte finished with 43 rebounds to Atlanta’s 37, a six-board advantage that would normally suggest control of extra possessions. It didn’t translate into a win because Atlanta erased that edge, and then some, in two other areas.

The first was turnovers. Atlanta committed just 7, while Charlotte gave the ball away 15 times. That’s an eight-possession swing in a three-point game, and it showed up directly on the scoreboard: Atlanta scored 23 points off Charlotte’s turnovers, while Charlotte managed only 8 off Atlanta’s.

The second was where the two teams scored. Atlanta piled up 66 points in the paint compared to Charlotte’s 48, an 18-point gap driven by the Hawks’ size and interior scoring around Okongwu, Daniels, and Johnson. Atlanta also had a 17-0 advantage in fast-break points, converting Charlotte’s mistakes directly into easy transition baskets.

Shooting Efficiency Told a Different Story Than Volume

Charlotte actually made three more three-pointers than Atlanta, 14 to 11, and attempted 13 more of them. On raw makes, that looks like a Charlotte advantage. But Atlanta shot a much better percentage from deep, 35.5% compared to Charlotte’s 31.8%, and a better overall field-goal percentage too, 49.5% to 45.3%.

Charlotte entered the game shooting an NBA-best 41.5% from three as a team, so holding the Hornets to well below that mark was a real defensive accomplishment for Atlanta, even with Knueppel’s franchise-record shooting night factored in.

Charlotte did have one clear statistical edge at the free-throw line, making 18 of 20 attempts (90%) compared to Atlanta’s 12 of 16 (75%). That’s a six-point swing in Charlotte’s favor from the stripe alone, which is part of why the game stayed close into the final possession.

What the Player Stats Tell Us

Read together, the charlotte hornets vs atlanta hawks match player stats show a game where individual scoring was almost even, Knueppel and Johnson both finished with 28, but team-level factors decided the outcome. Atlanta’s four 20-point scorers spread the defensive workload across the whole roster, while Charlotte leaned more heavily on its top three scorers.

The bigger story is possession management. Atlanta turned the ball over eight fewer times than Charlotte and converted those extra chances into transition points and easy baskets in the paint. Charlotte’s rebounding advantage and better free-throw shooting kept the game competitive, but it wasn’t enough to overcome giving Atlanta 23 extra points off turnovers.

For anyone studying this game, the lesson holds up beyond this single matchup: made three-pointers and rebounds get a lot of attention, but ball security and where a team scores from often decide close games more directly.

FAQ

What was the final score between the Hawks and Hornets on November 23, 2025? Atlanta won 113-110 at State Farm Arena.

Who scored the most points in the game? Jalen Johnson of Atlanta and Kon Knueppel of Charlotte tied for the game-high with 28 points each.

Who led the Atlanta Hawks in assists? Jalen Johnson led the team with 11 assists, part of a 28-point, 8-rebound, 11-assist performance.

What made Kon Knueppel’s performance historic? His seven made three-pointers set a Charlotte Hornets rookie franchise record.

Why did Atlanta win despite Charlotte grabbing more rebounds? Atlanta shot a better percentage from the field and from three, committed eight fewer turnovers, scored 18 more points in the paint, and held a 17-0 edge in fast-break points. Those advantages outweighed Charlotte’s rebounding and free-throw shooting edges.

How did the game end? With Atlanta leading 112-110 and 11 seconds left, Nickeil Alexander-Walker stripped Knueppel on a drive and was fouled, making 1 of 2 free throws. Charlotte’s last chance came on a Miles Bridges three-point attempt that missed badly at the buzzer.