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Hornets aim to recapture early-season success

Dec 7, 2007 - 3:12 PM Memphis (6-12) at New Orleans (12-7) 8:00 pm EST

NEW ORLEANS (Ticker) -- After a quick start, the New Orleans Hornets are fading in part because of their struggles at home. Perhaps a meeting with one of the NBA's worst road teams will help.

The Hornets welcome their Southwest Division rival, the Memphis Grizzlies, at New Orleans Arena on Friday.

New Orleans started the season 9-2 and won three of its first four home games, but have tailed off since, going 1-4 at home and 3-5 overall.

The latest example of the Hornets' home struggles came in Wednesday's 91-76 loss to the Detroit Pistons, a game in which they shot 35 percent (26-for-75) from the field, including just 27 percent (4-for-15) from the arc.

The team did get a standout performance from center Tyson Chandler, however, as the 25-year-old scored 17 points and grabbed a season-high 22 rebounds.

Whereas the Hornets' struggles have been short-term, the Grizzlies' road woes have been season-long. Memphis fell to 2-7 away from home on Wednesday when they lost 105-92 at Houston.

The Grizzlies missed some of their front-line post players in the loss as both Darko Milicic and Stromile Swift were sidelined with a stomach virus and an ankle injury, respectively. Their status for Friday is uncertain.