Charlotte 104 (42–36) | New Orleans 103 (35–44)
Ok, be honest: did you eally think we had a shot after the first half? The score was 60 to 38, Jeff Bower had been tossed, and the whole "let's push the pace to a gajillion miles per hour" just wasn't paying off. We looked off-kilter at best. It just wasn't pretty.
But someone must have given a ridiculous pep talk at the half, as the Hornets came out in blazing in the third, ending the quarter up by 1. That's right, the Bees went bananas to the tune of 40 to 19 for the quarter.
They even continued to play well through the fourth, but ultimately the Bobcats prevailed by out-rebounding the Bees and shooting great percentages from all over the court. The Hornets weren't too shabby either (they had a massive advantage in turnovers: 14 to 22), but they shot just enough behind to make the difference in a one point game.
Thornton approached a career high with 36 points and Collison added 24 of his own plus 9 assists. Not to mention they did it on better than 50% shooting. Not a bad outing for those two considering this game came on the announcement that Paul, after tearing a ligament in one of his fingers, is out for the remainder of the year.
All in all, the loss stung a little since it turned into such a close game. But since our main priorities right now are (A) stay healthy and (B) give the rookies more playing time in low-pressure (ie not playoff-bound) situations, I'd say tonight was a success. And an exciting one at that.
Opponent's Take: Rufus on Fire
Bobcats vs Hornets boxscore