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Hornets-Pacers Preview

Jan 16, 2010 - 5:55 AM By DAN PIERINGER STATS Editor

New Orleans (20-17) at Indiana (13-25), 6:00 p.m. EDT

After putting together their best stretch of the season, the New Orleans Hornets have struggled against some of the Eastern Conference's worst teams.

While the Indiana Pacers' record indicates they fall into that category, their recent play does not.

The Pacers look to win their fourth straight Saturday night when they host the Hornets, who are hoping to avoid their third loss in four games.

New Orleans (20-18) won a season-high six straight from Dec. 30-Jan. 10, but it's dropped two of three. The losses came against Philadelphia and Detroit - two of the five teams in the East with a winning percentage below .400.

Indiana (14-25) is another sub-.400 club, but it won't be for much longer if it can continue its recent surge. The Pacers delivered one of their best offensive performances of the season Friday night, shooting 53.1 percent and beating New Jersey 121-105 for their third straight win.

Indiana trailed by at least 23 points in each of the first two games of its winning streak, but it got off to a strong start against the Nets, scoring 72 first-half points and cruising after halftime.

"It was a change, considering in our last two wins we were down by 20," said star forward Danny Granger, who scored 22 of his 28 points before intermission and played 10 minutes in the second half. "This was a good one from the aspect that we blew the game open and kept the lead. They never really got close. It was a good effort on our part."

Second-year center Roy Hibbert thinks Indiana is capable of more games like Friday's.

"We can get up and down, shoot 3s, score in the paint," said Hibbert, who added 12 points against New Jersey. "Once we learn to play together and practice more, we can be a dangerous team in the East."

That doesn't bode well for the Hornets, who fell 110-104 in overtime Friday night against the injury-plagued Pistons, who had snapped a 13-game losing streak in their previous game.

Four days after getting outscored 27-12 in the first quarter of a 96-92 loss to the 76ers, New Orleans was outscored 31-16 in the first quarter against the Pistons. They were also outrebounded 46-34 overall, including 10-2 on the offensive glass, in falling to 6-10 against East opponents.

"We came out slow as usual, so we had to fight back into the game," said Chris Paul, who had 24 points and 14 assists. "We gave ourselves a chance, but we've been giving up a lot of offensive rebounds and tonight it bit us."

The Hornets, though, have had the edge in recent meetings with the Pacers. They've averaged 107.3 points while winning three straight in the series, including a 103-100 home victory in the last meeting Jan. 19.

Paul had 27 points, nine assists and five rebounds in that game and is averaging 25.7 points and 11.7 assists during New Orleans' winning streak in the series. Hornets forward Peja Stojakovic, who played for the Pacers for the second half of the 2005-06 season, has averaged 18.0 points while making 11 of 20 3-point attempts during that run.

Granger has averaged 30.0 points and made 12 of 18 from behind the arc during the Pacers' skid against the Hornets. He's scored 30.5 per game while shooting 50.0 percent from the field over his last two games after struggling with his touch in his first three following a month-long absence due to a foot injury.