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Hornets try to continue home success against Jazz

Mar 4, 2007 - 5:25 PM Utah (39-19) at New Orleans (28-31) 7:00 pm EST

OKLAHOMA CITY (Ticker) - The New Orleans Hornets have had problems with injuries and offense. They have used their home floor to temporarily resolve them.

Looking for their seventh straight home win Sunday, the surging Hornets host the Utah Jazz, who have been playing well on the road.

Overall, the Hornets have won seven of their last 11 games to move into ninth place in the Western Conference, one game behind the Los Angeles Clippers and the Denver Nuggets for the final playoff spot.

The Hornets have endured injury problems that sidelined three starters and key reserve Bobby Jackson for huge chunks of the season. As a result, they are next-to-last in the league in scoring (93.3) and field-goal percentage (.437).

The consistency the Hornets have developed at home has not yet translated to the road. They are coming off Friday's 104-93 loss at Chicago despite placing six scorers in double figures.

The Jazz are looking to complete a perfect three-game trip with their fourth straight road win. They are coming off Friday's 109-83 rout at Minnesota in which Deron Williams scored 21 points, Gordan Giricek added 20 and Matt Harpring 19.

Utah, which has won four of five overall, is sixth in the NBA in scoring at 102.5 points per game.

The Jazz suffered a 94-83 loss here January 27. The Hornets have taken 11 of the last 14 matchups.