Hornets extend winning streak to 8 games with 109-99 victory over Rockets

HOUSTON (AP) — Rookie Kon Knueppel had 24 points and LaMelo Ball added 20 to help the Charlotte Hornets roll to a 109-99 victory over the Houston Rockets on Thursday night and extend their winning streak to eight games.

Charlotte’s streak is the franchise’s longest since winning nine in a row in the 1998-99 season.

The Hornets led by 16 after three quarters and Brandon Miller scored the first five points of the fourth to extend the lead to 96-75 with about 11 minutes to go. A 5-0 run by Charlotte, with a 3-pointer by Sion James, made it 103-81 with about eight minutes remaining and Houston coach Ime Udoka pulled his starters.

It’s a second straight lopsided defeat for the Rockets, who lost 114-93 Wednesday night to a Boston team playing without star Jaylen Brown.

Kevin Durant led Houston, which entered Thursday in fourth place in the Western Conference, with 31 points and Jabari Smith Jr. added 17. It was a tough night for Alperen Sengun, who was averaging 21.2 points, and scored just seven on 3-of-11 shooting.

Miles Bridges added 18 points for the Hornets and Miller finished with 11 after sitting out the entire second quarter after getting three fouls in the first.

Coby White was with the team after a trade from the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday. But he did not play and is expected to sit out until after the All-Star break because of a nagging calf injury.

A basket by Durant got the Rockets within 7 before James and Ball made consecutive 3-pointers to push the lead to 83-70 with about four minutes left in the third.

Charlotte was up by 12 late in the third before scoring the last four points of the quarter to take a 91-75 lead into the fourth.

Hornets: Visit Atlanta on Saturday night.

Rockets: Visit Oklahoma City on Saturday.

AP NBA: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NBA

Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun, left, passes the ball over his back against Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges (0) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/ Karen Warren)

Houston Rockets forward Isaiah Crawford (27) and Charlotte Hornets forward Moussa Diabate chase a loose ball during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/ Karen Warren)

Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun (28) tries to control the ball against Charlotte Hornets forward Grant Williams (2) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/ Karen Warren)

Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges goes to the basket against Houston Rockets guard Josh Okogie (20) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/ Karen Warren)

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Drew Brees and Larry Fitzgerald headlined the 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame class featuring five players but not six-time Super Bowl winning head coach Bill Belichick.

Brees and Fitzgerald both made it in their first year of eligibility in results announced at NFL Honors on Thursday night after prolific careers. Luke Kuechly and Adam Vinatieri made it in their second seasons of eligibility, while Roger Craig was the lone pick among seniors, coaches and contributors.

But the class is also noteworthy for Belichick's absence as at least 11 of the 50 voters opted against giving him a vote despite a career with 333 wins in the regular season and playoffs and the most Super Bowl titles of any head coach. A report last week that Belichick fell short in his first year of eligibility was met with widespread criticism of both the voters and the process for choosing Hall of Famers.

The man who hired Belichick in New England to set the stage for the Patriots dynasty also fell short, with owner Robert Kraft failing to get enough votes.

This is the second straight year with a smaller class after only four people made it last year as new rule changes have made it harder to get into the Hall. There had been at least seven people inducted in the previous 12 classes before last year.

That contributed to the snub for Belichick and Kraft, who were grouped with Craig and two other players — Ken Anderson and L.C. Greenwood — who have been retired for at least 25 seasons. The voters picked three of the five candidates with the highest vote-getter and anyone else above 80% getting the honor.

Craig, who was in his 28th year of eligibility, was the only one of those five to make it. Craig was the first player ever to have 1,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving in the same season, which happened in 1985, and he led the NFL with 2,036 yards from scrimmage in 1988 when he helped San Francisco win the Super Bowl.

Craig also was part of the title-winning teams for the 49ers in the 1984 and 1989 seasons. His 410 yards from scrimmage in those Super Bowl wins are the third-most ever behind Hall of Famers Jerry Rice and Franco Harris.

Vinatieri was one of the most clutch kickers in NFL history, making the game-winning field goals in the first two Super Bowl victories during New England’s dynasty with Belichick and Kraft in charge. He joined Jan Stenerud and Morten Andersen as the only players in the Hall who were primarily kickers in their careers.

Vinatieri helped launch the run with one of the game’s greatest kicks — a 45-yarder in the snow to force overtime in the “Tuck Rule” game against the Raiders in the 2001 divisional round. He made the game-winning kick in OT to win that game and then hit a 48-yarder on the final play of a 20-17 win in the Super Bowl against the Rams.

Vinatieri is the NFL’s career leader in points (2,673) and made field goals (599) over a 24-year career with New England and Indianapolis. He also leads all players with 56 field goals and 238 points in the postseason.

Brees is second all time to Tom Brady with 80,358 yards passing and 571 touchdown passes. He spent the first five seasons of his career with the San Diego Chargers before signing as a free agent with the Saints in 2006, where his career took off as he helped lift a city still recovering from Hurricane Katrina.

Brees delivered to New Orleans its first Super Bowl title following the 2009 season, when he won MVP of the game after beating Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts. Brees made the Pro Bowl 13 times in his career, won AP Offensive Player of the Year in 2008 and 2011, was an All-Pro in 2006 and was a second-team All-Pro four times.

Fitzgerald spent his entire career with the Arizona Cardinals after being drafted third overall in 2004. His 1,432 catches and 17,492 yards receiving in 17 seasons rank second all time to Jerry Rice.

Fitzgerald topped 1,000 yards receiving nine times — tied for the fourth-most ever — and helped the Cardinals reach their only Super Bowl following the 2008 season. Fitzgerald set single-season records that postseason with 546 yards receiving and seven TD catches, including a go-ahead 64-yard score with 2:37 to play in the Super Bowl before Pittsburgh rallied for a 27-23 win over Arizona.

Kuechly’s career was brief but impactful. The first-round pick by Carolina in 2012 was an All-Pro five times, with seven Pro Bowl nods and a Defensive Rookie of the Year award. Over his eight-year career, Kuechly led all linebackers in the NFL in tackles (1,090), takeaways (26), interceptions (18) and passes defensed (66).

Voters reduced the list of 15 finalists in the modern era category to 10 and then seven before voting for five to make it. The top three vote-getters and anyone else above 80% got into the Hall.

Offensive linemen Willie Anderson and Marshal Yanda, and edge rusher Terrell Suggs made it to the final seven in the modern-era category and will automatically be finalists again next year.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2026 Larry Fitzgerald, Luke Kuechly, kicker Adam Vinatieri, Roger Craig and Drew Brees stand of stage during the NFL Honors award show, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)