Charlotte @ New York preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 27, 2017 ) Charlotte 107, New York 110

Kristaps Porzingis has elevated his game during the New York Knicks' current homestand, which ends Tuesday night against the Charlotte Hornets. The 22-year-old Porzingis scored a career-high 40 points in Sunday's 108-101 win over Indiana, which gave the Knicks a 3-1 mark on the homestand and their star forward an average of 33.5 points during the stay at Madison Square Garden.

"The challenge is never too big for me," Porzingis said Sunday after also producing eight rebounds and six blocked shots. "I always accept the challenge and that's why I knew coming into this season, if (Carmelo Anthony) was not going to be here, then I am going to have to be the guy." Porzingis is shooting 54.5 percent and averaging 2.8 blocked shots in six home games, compared to 40.9 and 1.0 on the road, and will take aim at a Hornets' team that has allowed an average of 110.3 points over a six-game span. Charlotte fell behind 97-79 after just three quarters en route to a loss at Minnesota on Sunday. Leading scorer Kemba Walker was held to a season-low nine points on 4-of-15 shooting - including 0-for-5 from 3-point range.

TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FSN Southeast (Charlotte), MSG (New York)

ABOUT THE HORNETS (5-5): Coach Steve Clifford expressed some frustration with the team's defensive effort Sunday, knowing that his roster cannot afford many issues on that end of the floor, especially with Walker struggling. "Our team is not overpowering offensively," Clifford told reporters. "We can get to be very good. But defensively, we can be great. That starts with the right attitude. And tonight, we had it totally backward." Forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, a key piece of the team's defensive game plan, has missed two straight games due to personal reasons and there is no timetable for his return.

ABOUT THE KNICKS (5-4): The Knicks are 5-1 when rookie Frank Ntilikina plays at least 10 minutes and the 19-year-old put forth one of his best stat lines in Sunday's win. He finished with season highs of 10 points and seven assists while making two 3-pointers for the first time in his young career and accumulating three steals in 24 minutes. "He shot it with [the mentality] 'OK, I'm going to make this one,'" coach Jeff Hornacek told reporters. "There was no doubt. That's great to see in a 19-year-old. He's finding his way out there. It says a lot about him and how he plays with confidence. He's not afraid of the moment."

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Knicks C Enes Kanter entered Monday ranked sixth in the NBA in field-goal percentage (60.9) and seventh in rebounds (11.3).

2. Walker is 8-for-27 from the floor and averaging 11 points - more than 10 below his season average - in the last two games.

3. The Knicks took two of three meetings last season.

PREDICTION: Knicks 109, Hornets 102