Charlotte
Philip Maymin
Basketball News Services
While the final tally will say the Bobcats came up short against the Kobe-less Lakers last night, losing 101-90in the Staples Center, the box score will surprise you with some of the pleasant performances off the bench for Charlotte.
Brevin Knight came back from injury to play a solid 23 minutes that translated into a full game would have given him a double-double in points and assists and a 5:1 assist:turnover ratio.
Jamal Sampson literally leaped off the bench to rip down 12 rebounds in just 19 minutes.
Not to mention the fine performances of the starters. Emeka Okafor was unable to reignite a new string of double-doubles but no worries: Primoz Brezec got one with 15 points and 10 boards.
The entire team passed well: every player other than Steve Smith (who logged only 6 minutes, in which he scored 5 points) tallied at least one assist. Jason Hart made the most of his start, dishing out seven assists and also hustling on defense to get both a steal and a blocked shot.
The difference came down to fouls and free throws. The Lakers went to the line 13 more times on 8 extra fouls by the Bobcats, including clinching free throws at the end of the game when the Bobcats had cut the deficit to six on a Gerald Wallace trey.
Charlotte's road woes continue as they drop to nine straight road losses and 1-19 away from home overall. Their one road victory was in Houston, which was a homecoming for rookie star Okafor, who grew up there. Unfortunately, the Bobcats don't go back there again this season. Instead, they face the prospect of three straight games on the road, against the Jazz, Blazers, and Sonics, all this week.
NEXT GAME
The Bobcats (9-32, fourth in the Southeast) hope to kick the road-losing habit tomorrow, Tuesday, February 1, 2005, as they visit the Utah Jazz (15-30, fifth in the Northwest). The game starts at 9:00pm Eastern and will be broadcast on C-SET and NBA League Pass.
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INJURY UPDATE
Jahidi White(shoulder), Theron Smith(knee),Tamar Slay (foot) are all parked on the injured list.Brevin Knight(ankle) did not play in last night's game.