The Hornets delivered perhaps their best performance of the season on Monday against the Lakers, and tonight they’ll try keep it rolling against the visiting Washington Wizards. Game tips at 7 Central.
The Wizards are 21-52 on the season, 9-28 on the road and have lost a whopping 16 straight. Yes, they haven’t won a game since February. Last night they were in Houston and lost 94-98 to a short-handed Rockets team. Wiz big man Andray Blatche dropped 31 and 10 in Houston, continuing to be the lone bright spot for the team of late; he’s averaging 20 points and 8 boards the last two months. (Update: As Wiz blogger Kyle Weidie tells it though, Blatche has “too much Tin Man in him… no heart… especially when it comes to rebounding toughness.”)
The only other meeting between the Hornets and Wizards this season was back on January 10 in Washington. Chris Paul came up big in the clutch and finished with 26 points and 14 assists to lead the Hornets to a 115-110 victory. The Hornets were also dialed in from deep in that game, nailing 13-of-23 attempts.
Antawn Jamison and Randy Foye combined to score 55 points for the Wizards in that January game, but now Jamison is in Cleveland and Foye is likely done for the season with a wrist injury. Also, Josh Howard is out with a knee injury, and Al Thornton (hip flexor) is expected miss tonight’s game.
For the Hornets, there’s no word on a return date for Peja Stojakovic.
Numbers:
Pace: Wizards 94.2 (20th), Hornets 94.7 (16th)
Offensive Efficiency: Wizards 100.7 (26th), Hornets 105.0 (14th)
Defensive Efficiency: Wizards 106.4 (18th), Hornets 107.1 (23rd)
Linkage:
- In case you haven’t heard: Tim Floyd’s headed to UTEP
- Journals: Priorities of Work for Hornets Front Office
- Rival bloggers: Bullets Forever | Truth About It (THN) | Wizards Insider
(Many thanks to Dariusz for today’s banner featuring Marcus Thornton. Be sure to check out more of Dariusz’s designs in our Wallpapers vault.)