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Late run keeps Hornets undefeated in preseason play

Oct 22, 2008 - 3:03 AM NEW ORLEANS (Ticker) -- The New Orleans Hornets staged a late fourth-quarter rally to upend the Indiana Pacers, remaining undefeated in preseason play with a 101-96 victory on Tuesday night.

The Hornets (6-0) closed the game on an 11-2 run over the final 3:30, erasing a four-point deficit to deal the Pacers (3-4) their second loss in a row.

Free agent addition James Posey, fresh off a title run with the Boston Celtics, picked up his fourth steal of the night with just over three minutes remaining and found Peja Stojakovic for a game-tying 3-pointer to spark the rally.

With Indiana leading by a point just over a minute later, All-Star point guard Chris Paul found Tyson Chandler for an alley-oop layup to give New Orleans the lead for good. Chandler added a hook shot one possession later, and Paul finished things off with a pair of free throws as the Hornets hung on.

Paul collected 21 points, 15 assists and three steals, hitting 6-of-11 from the floor and 10-of-10 from the foul line. His favorite frontcourt target and fellow All-Star David West led all scorers with 26.

Their efforts seemed to be enough over the first three quarters, as the Hornets controlled the majority of the game and took a nine-point lead into the final quarter.

But the Pacers got hot from long range in the fourth. Troy Murphy buried a pair of 3-pointers and rookie guard Brandon Rush connected from the arc to give the Pacers an 87-84 lead.

Indiana forward Danny Granger scored nine of his 20 points in the fourth and added six rebounds and seven assists. New starting point guard T.J. Ford, acquired this offseason in a trade with the Toronto Raptors, collected 14 points and four steals while Murphy added 12 and 10 boards.

The Hornets will close out their preseason slate Thursday when they host the Miami Heat. The Pacers will travel to Dallas to take on the Mavericks for their preseason finale.