Receiving reports of the destruction of the U.S. destroyers from Ayanami and his other ships, Kondo pointed his bombardment force towards Guadalcanal, believing that the U.S. warship force had been defeated.
Efter at have modtaget rapporter om ødelæggelsen af de amerikanske destroyere fra Ayanami og hans andre skibe drejede Kondo sin bombardementstyrke mod Guadalcanal, i den tro, at den amerikanske styrke var blevet besejret.