Game 6: A 120–113 win over the Magic… featuring NoDa’s Par 4
A big win to top off a decent day in Charlotte sports, a beer to put me on the golf course?
The Panthers played Sunday afternoon and won, beating Tampa Bay 17–3 with solid defense and good-enough offense. It was tough to watch; I just couldn’t get into that game knowing the Hornets were coming up at 6pm, the MLS Playoffs followed, and the World Series would go after that (and long into the night).
But the Hornets game was a good one, as the first-place (?!) Orlando Magic came to the Hive and were knocked out 120–113 by Kemba’s 34 points and 10 assists, J-Lamb’s 20 points, Dwight’s 22 points and 10 rebounds, and Cody Zeller’s return to the lineup. I’ll take all of it.
With four games to watch in one day, I skipped a bit of the second and third quarter to do laundry and put the sick kiddo to bed, but what I saw was all good for the Purple and Teal. Midway through the fourth, I caught myself saying to Abbey, “When Kemba and Dwight are clicking, this team could beat anyone.” That might be a stretch, but they sure are fun.
And if everyone can stay healthy, there’s more to be hopeful about… Kemba-Batum-MKG-Marvin-Dwight… Monk-Lamb-Bacon-Frank-Cody? Yeah, that’s deep enough. Cody would beat up second string centers, and Frank looks like he’s turning into a real weapon too so far this season. Get Monk and Bacon acclimated to the NBA game, get Batum healthy, and we’re a playoff team for sure.
For this game, I switched from OMB to NoDa Brewing Company and tried their Par 4 Session IPA for the first time. The baby blue can has a chipmunk with golfballs on one side and a sloth playing disc golf on the other… and when I opened it, I smelled grass. Like, I desperately needed to be outside playing baseball or soccer or disc golf or something.
Here’s how they describe it: “Stay in the zone with a low ABV beer that still packs robust flavor and mouthfeel. Brewed with nearly four pounds of hops per barrel and mashed with oats, Par 4 has a smooth and balanced body to even out the payload delivered by a bouquet of select West Coast hops.”
I rarely finish a tallboy of an IPA while at home, but this one was smooth enough to do that easily (and the 4.0% alcohol/volume makes it easy too).
And, while beers that remind me of drinking grass aren’t usually my thing, this one wasn’t bad. Grassy (probably pine), citrusy, a solid session IPA.
I’ll give it a 7/10 Muggsys rating, joining the OMB Copper at that above-average mark. Not bad at all… for an IPA.
There’s no rest for the Hornets: They’re back in action tonight in Memphis, a team as hot as Orlando was before running into Buzz City. The Grizzlies are 5–1 and have beaten the Rockets twice already, a team that made short work of Charlotte at the Hive last week. Oh, and they beat the Warriors too. This should go well.
Conley and Gasol have Memphis alone in first place in the stacked Western Conference. Do Kemba and Dwight stand a chance tonight? We’ll see… at least I’ve got one of my favorites, NoDa’s Coco Loco, for the contest. Buzzzzzzz.
