Hornets tie franchise record with 26 3s, rout Kings 134-90

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Coby White made six of Charlotte’s franchise-tying 26 3-pointers and finished with 27 points as the Hornets routed the Sacramento Kings 134-90 on Tuesday night for their fourth straight win.

LaMelo Ball had 20 points on six 3s and Moussa Diabate added 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Hornets (38-34), who pulled within two games of the Atlanta Hawks for sixth place in the Eastern Conference.

Daeqwon Plowden had 22 points and ex-Hornet Malik Monk had a career-high 14 assists for the Kings (19-54).

Kon Knueppel added four 3s for the Hornets as the rookie from Duke moved into second place in franchise history for 3s made in a season with 247. He needs 14 to pass Kemba Walker, now a player enhancement coach with the Hornets.

The 26 3-pointers matched the franchise record set on March 14, 2025, at San Antonio.

Charlotte raced to a 72-47 lead at halftime, shooting 13 of 29 from beyond the arc with Ball and White leading the way with four each at the midway point.

Charlotte pushed its lead to 46 early in the fourth quarter.

Ball, who has been on a heater of late, set the tone early by showing off his full bag of tricks — shooting 3s off one foot, throwing no-look dimes and outleaping opponents for rebounds, seemingly toying with the Kings at times.

The Hornets had a chance to break the franchise record for 3s in a game in the final 3 but rookie center Ryan Kalbrenner — who rarely shoots from deep — badly missed from the corner.

The Kings offered little in the way of defensive resistance as the Hornets shot 51% and held a 57-35 edge on the glass.

Kings: At Orlando on Thursday night.

Hornets: Host New York Knicks on Thursday night.

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

Charlotte Hornets guard Kon Knueppel (7) drives to the basket against Sacramento Kings guard Devin Carter during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Charlotte, N.C., Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Nell Redmond)

Sacramento Kings guard Devin Carter (22) falls over Charlotte Hornets guard Coby White for the ball during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Charlotte, N.C., Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Nell Redmond)

Charlotte Hornets guard Coby White (3) looks to shoot against Sacramento Kings guard DeMar DeRozan (3) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Charlotte, N.C., Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Nell Redmond)

Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball celebrates after making a 3-point basket against the Sacramento Kings during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Charlotte, N.C., Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Nell Redmond)

Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball (1) shoots over Sacramento Kings guard Malik Monk during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Charlotte, N.C., Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Nell Redmond)

Democrat Emily Gregory won a Florida special election on Tuesday, flipping a state legislative district that is home to Mar-a-Lago, the Palm Beach estate that President Donald Trump counts as his residence.

The president had endorsed Gregory’s rival, Jon Maples. In a social media post Monday, he urged voters to turn out, saying Maples was backed “by so many of my Palm Beach County friends.”

Democrats celebrated the victory as the latest sign voters are turning against Trump and Republicans ahead of the midterm elections in November. Tuesday was the latest in a series of lopsided or improbable victories in special elections across the country since Trump returned to the White House more than a year ago.

The district was previously represented by Mike Caruso, a Republican who resigned to become Palm Beach County's clerk. Caruso won by 19 percentage points in 2024.

“If Mar-a-Lago is vulnerable, imagine what’s possible this November,” said Heather Williams, president of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee. She said Tuesday's race was the 29th seat that Democrats have flipped from Republican control since Trump took office.

“Gas prices are spiking, grocery costs are up, and families can’t get by — it’s clear voters at the polls are fed up with Republicans,” Williams said.

With almost all votes counted, Gregory led by 2.4 percentage points, or 797 votes.

Gregory grew up north of Palm Beach in Stuart. She’s the owner of a fitness company that works with pregnant and postpartum women, and she has never run for elected office before.

Speaking to MSNOW after her victory, she said she was “pretty shocked" and “having a fairly out-of-body experience.”

Democrats have notched some notable wins in Republican-controlled Florida. In December, Eileen Higgins won the race for Miami mayor, the first time a Democrat had led the city in nearly three decades. She defeated a Trump-endorsed Republican in a campaign that leaned heavily into criticism of the president’s immigration crackdown, a message that resonated with the city’s large Hispanic population.

Farther west in Texas, Democrat Taylor Rehmet flipped a reliably Republican state Senate district in a special election in January.

Trump immediately distanced himself from the loss in a district he’d won by 17 points in 2024, saying “I’m not involved in that" even though he had endorsed the Republican candidate.

The Texas race energized Democrats desperate for signs of momentum after being locked out of power in Washington.

But winning in Trump's backyard left them especially ebullient.

“Donald Trump’s own neighbors just sent a crystal clear message: They are furious and ready for change,” said Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin.

Trump voted by mail in the Tuesday election and his ballot was counted, Palm Beach County voter records show. He chose a mail ballot despite publicly bashing the voting method as a source of fraud and pushing Congress to curtail the practice.

Trump was a New Yorker for most of his life but switched his personal residence and voter registration to Florida during his first term. Mar-a-Lago has become a gathering place for Trump's friends and allies, as well as business executives and foreign leaders looking to curry favor with him. He spends many weekends there as president.

FILE - An aerial view of former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Fla., on Aug. 31, 2022. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)

President Donald Trump speaks with reporters during the swearing in ceremony for Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, March 24, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)