Game On: Hornets @ T’Wolves

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Published: January 22, 2010

Marcus Thornton vs. Jonny FlynnThe Hornets get started on their four-game road trip tonight, visiting the Timberwolves in Minneapolis. Game tips at 7 Central.

The T’Wolves are the worst team in the Western Conference. Losing ten of their last twelve puts their record at 9-34 on the season. They’re scoring 9.4 points less than their opponents per game, which is by far the worst scoring margin among all teams not named the Nets. That said, Minnesota has played a number of close games recently, taking the Rockets and Sixers to OT and losing by just a deuce to the visiting Thunder on Wednesday. Kevin Love has missed the last two games for the T’Wolves with strep throat but will play tonight.

This is meeting three of four between the Hornets and T’Wolves this season. New Orleans won both previous battles, with Chris Paul returning from injury like a stud on December 4, then dropping the game-winning layup on December 9. Worth noting that the T’Wolves out-rebounded the Hornets by an average of 15 in those two games. Marcus Thornton dropped 20 in the latter.

Some numbers:

Pace: T’Wolves 98.5 (4th), Hornets 94.2 (21st)
Offensive Efficiency: T’Wolves 97.3 (29th), Hornets 104.3 (14th)
Defensive Efficiency: T’Wolves 107.2 (23rd), Hornets 105.7 (20th)

The Hornets have been up and down lately (loss-win-loss-win-loss-win), coming off Wednesday’s thrilling win over the Grizzlies in New Orleans. David West has been playing well, averaging 22 points and 9 boards in his last four.

Linkage:

(Many thanks to Dariusz for today’s banner featuring Peja Stojakovic. Be sure to check out more of Dariusz’s designs in our Wallpapers vault.)

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