Game On: Hornets @ Warriors

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Published: February 15, 2011

Two games left until the All-Star Break. Say it with me “Just two games left!” The Hornets are limping into the break, having lost 7 of their last 9, due in large part to injuries to Ariza and Okafor and in small part to some noticeable fatigue being shown by CP3. They head into this game 10 games over .500, and the hope is that they can win at least 1 of these 2 games before getting a week of rest.

The Warriors gave the Hornets all sorts of trouble in their first matchup this season, staying with them for the first three quarters before getting read-hot in the 4th and pulling away. The second matchup was more one-sided as the Hornets led by as many as 25 before Golden State made a run against the Hornets bench to make the score look closer than it really was.

There were a couple of common denominators in both games:

1) CP3 was fantastic in both games

2.) West could get any shot he wanted

3.) M. Ellis scored 25+ in both games

4.) The Hornets outscored GS in the paint in both games and won the rebounding battle by an average of 9

5.) The Warriors lived at the free throw line, averaging nearly 30 per contest

6.) The Warriors turned the Hornets over far more than they usually do, as the Hornets averaged 20 turnovers per game

This game is going to be uptempo, and the Hornets will really miss Emeka in this contest, but having Trevor back is huge against a team with so much perimeter scoring. Willie Green is going to problems no matter who Monty puts him on, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Marco and Marcus get more time in this matchup or if Monty plays Willie Green at the 3 for several minutes tonight.

Other News and Notes:

– Over his last three games, Chris Paul is averaging 13 and 8, shooting just 30 percent fro the field. Say it with me, “Just two more games until the All-Star break!”

– Hornets are giving up nearly 100 PPG since Emeka has been out of the lineup. In addition, the Hornets have lost their edge on the boards, as they have been outrebounded in each of their last 4 losses- including an embarressing -21 on Saturday night against the Bulls.

– In the last matchup, Hornets shot 62% from the field, scored 60 points in the paint, and had 35 fast-break points. All were season highs.

– Ekpe Udoh is a combined +25 in the 30 minutes he has played against the Hornets this season. The next highest number comes from Dorell Wright, who is a +7.

– Vegas Zone: The Hornets are a 2 point underdog and the over/under is 201. I say bet heavy on the over and I have a sneaky feeling the Hornets show up big for this one after being knocked down a peg by the Bulls at home. Hornets 112 Warriors 105.

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