The Hornets pick up their first win, 88-86, while dealing the Jazz their first loss.

Let me start off by saying: I love this team. I am so happy to have a team that plays hard, that just looks and plays like a team that won’t quit, and that I don’t have to worry about skipping town. Monty has done great things with these little scamps, and I just can’t wait to see what the future hold, win or lose.

In a battle of old New Orleans and new New Orleans . . . or new new New Orleans, as the case may be . . . the New Orleans Hornets came out on top after delivering a constant diet of Never Gonna Stop to the Jazz. Both teams suffered from losing players to injury for at least a portion of the game, but the Hornets got their licks right where it counted: Anthony Davis and Eric Gordon.

Here is the team report on Davis:

“Hornets forward Anthony Davis suffered a mild concussion tonight in the first half vs. Utah and did not return. He will undergo further tests in New Orleans on Saturday and is out for tomorrow night’s game in Chicago. Beyond that, he will be listed as day to day.”

So how did the Hornets win?

As noted in the preview, the team needed to limit turnovers. They did. 12 turnovers by the Hornets compared to 15 by the Jazz. Wednesday was also good in the regard. If it keeps up, this is a sign of wins on the horizon. Not two, not three, not four, not five, not six, not seven . . .

Also, they needed a boost from Aminu. They got it. 15 points on 10 shots, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals with a cost of a pair of turnovers and a pair of fouls in 34 minutes. The team tried to run some and netted 14 fast break points. While not spectacular in itself, the total may have been enough to help get the small forward going. He was the most efficient member of the team tonight to boot.

Lastly, our frontcourt had to make up for the damage their backcourt was going to do to us. Their guards scored 50 of their 86 points, and one of the four with minutes was 0-2 in 17 minutes. Our 5 guards . . . 21 points.

The Jazz’s scoring was rounded out by 32 points by power forwards and centers and 4 points from a small forward. We got 52 and 15, respectively, with Davis seeing only 14 minutes of action.

As noted above, the team was just in this game. They keep rallying around this bad Gordon news, they rallied around the fact that Davis did not return to the game, and the didn’t let lulls in performance or a big Jazz shot deflate them. I saw guys genuinely happy out there. So much so, Monty had trouble controlling them after Vasquez’s big go-ahead layup to set the defense for the Jazz response . . . and he was grinning while he was doing it.

It’s a good time to be a Hornets fan, all things considered.

The Hornets take on the Bulls Saturday, 7 p.m. CDT. Check here if you need help finding the guys under the new TV deal.

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