Hornets247.com

.500 will have to wait.

After delivering great offense and decent defense before halftime, the Hornets got blitzed in the second half tonight, falling to the visiting Knicks, 113-96 (boxscore). It looked like we were in for another tight finish midway through the fourth quarter after James Posey scored a layup to put the Hornets ahead by one with 4:56 left, but that would be the last basket New Orleans would score as the Knicks finished it it out with an 18-0 run.

Decent Defense

All 18 of those late points by the Knicks came from behind the three-point line, two of them banking in and most coming from well beyond the arc. I can recall just two of those shots being good open looks. So I can't be too hard on the Hornets defense for losing this game.

My main intention watching the game was to keep a close eye on the Hornets D, trying to see who might not be pulling their weight. Overall though, I don't think it was a bad effort at that end of the floor. The worst defensive stretch the Hornets had was probably the start of the fourth quarter, when they let David Lee score easy baskets twice in succession off the same pick and roll, and then let Al Harrington get into the lane a couple of times with little resistance.

Offense Deteriorates

The offensive end was where the Hornets really fell apart. Not an easy task to match 18 points in five minutes by the Knicks, but to go scoreless is inexcusable. Once again the offense bogged down and guys tried to do too much themselves.

It was a huge contrast to the first half, when New Orleans scored a season-high 62 points as Chris Paul and Darren Collison picked apart the Kincks D to the tune of 15 combined assists. Emeka Okafor was the go-to guy early, as he got deep in the paint against David Lee several times and was rewarded with nice feeds for easy buckets.

Continue reading »

Knicks in town tonight, gunning for their fourth consecutive win just like the Hornets. Game tips at the usual 7 Central.

New York have won four of five after a 3-14 start, and much of the credit is being given to Al Harrington's book club. Well, that and not playing Nate Robinson (DNP-CD the past four). The trio of Harrington, David Lee and Larry Hughes have been playing well, while Eddy Curry has been chilling for two weeks with a knee injury.

The Knicks last played on Monday, hosting and beating the Blazers, 93-84.

A win for the Hornets would mean their first .500 record since 1-1 and their first four-game winning streak of the season, but they've been struggling to beat some easy competition of late. Lots of room for improvement, especially on defense.

This will be the second and final meeting of the Hornets and Knicks this season. Early November saw the Hornets in NYC, getting beat 111-117. That was back in the day of little help from the bench.

The game isn't on local or national TV, but thanks to Hornets Hype I have a 24-hour coupon thingy for NBA League Pass Broadband. I'll e-mail the code to the first registered commenter who wants it.

Linkage:

• Lagniappe: Emeka's shoes, Rambis ribbing Paul and some D-West criticism
  
• Rival bloggers: KnickerBlogger.Net (THN) | Knicks Knation | Posting and Toasting

(Many thanks to Dariusz for the banner, today featuring the one and only Muggsy Bogues. Be sure to check out more of Dariusz's designs in our Wallpapers vault.)

I missed most of the first half of the game, since League Pass has yet to play a game on the channel it says its going to play it on - making life hard on TiVO and me.  Anyways, I still had some observations, and if you feel anything is missing, Mr. Kennedy's started producing his own Game Recaps in the Journal Section. Take a gander.

On to the bullets:

• The defeat tonight can be laid at the feet of the Hornets defense once more.  Believe it or not, but in general it takes longer for a good defense to gel than a good offense to gel.  So far, however, its hard to even see the makings of a good defense.  Though the perimeter is hardly a stout bastion of defense, its been the interior defense that has killed the Hornets this season.  Time and again, the Knicks ran a simple delayed pick and roll, and over and over the big man who should be coming over to help didn't materialize.  The result - a layup line.  West and Okafor just aren't communicating and aren't covering each other, and they made David Lee look like David Robinson.
  
  
• Paul's shooting has been crazy to start the season.  It's a shame it's been wasted.  I know some people won't like it, but I also like the way he's been managing the game.  For the first half, he tries to get the rest of the team going, after the half, he goes nuts.  Right now, that might cause growing pains, but I think it will pay off in the long run.
  
  
• Bold prediction:  Darren Collison will see minutes next game.  I have nothing to base this on but hope and another poor showing from Bobby Brown and Devin Brown that saw Byron curtail their minutes.

Continue reading »

First segababa of the season, as the Hornets roll into NYC to take on the Knicks.

The Knicks are 0-3 on the season, but they played their first two games on the road, and their last two have gone to overtime. Nate Robinson sprained his ankle Saturday against the Sixers and is expected to miss two weeks. Everyone else is healthy for the Knicks.

No word on the Hornets injury situation just yet. I assume Ike Diogu is still out.

Game tips at 6:30 p.m. Central. Only way you can catch this one on TV is via League Pass. Failing that, check Gerry V and Sean Kelley calling it on 106.7 FM.

Oh, and don't forget that other game tonight.

Linkage:

• Journals: Hornets-Celtics post-game report
  
• Earlier on the blog: What really happened between Rondo and Paul
• Rival bloggers: KnickerBlogger.Net (THN) | Knicks Knation | Posting and Toasting

(Many thanks to Dariusz for the banner.)

Hornets at Madison Square Garden tonight to take on the Knicks. Game tips at 6:30 p.m. Central.

The Knicks are 28-43 on the season, 18-19 at home, currently riding a six-game losing streak. They might get Eddy Curry back from a knee injury tonight.

Bad news for the Hornets today: Tyson will be "immobilized" for the next 7-14 days because of that ankle injury. Any day now the team will announce that Peja is to be cryogenically frozen until scientists invent a mechanical replacement for the human spine.

Not a gimmie game tonight. Recall that the Knicks beat us in New Orleans back in January when we were fully healthy. Here's video of the New York D from that game.

Rival action to keep an eye on this eve (all times Central): Nuggets at Mavericks (7:30), Clippers at Spurs (7:30). Full standings here.

I'll be at the Garden tonight with some buddies. Keep an eye out for a Bobby Phills jersey on CST. I'll try post some game updates via Twitter.

Linkage:

• Ryan's game preview
• Honeybees vs. Warrior Girls in the NBA.com Dance Bracket: Vote now.
  
• Lagniappe: The fire Byron bandwagon gets rolling, plus some other stuff.
  
• Rival bloggers: KnickerBlogger.Net | Knicks Knation | Posting and Toasting
  

(Many thanks to Dariusz for the banner and the above image.)