Falling down on the job

Everyone in the Hornets organization remembers last year after the All-Star break, in which the team went a ghastly 9-21 and dropped from the sixth playoff position to off the radar entirely.

You'd think a memory like that might impel the team to thrash the unruly Charlotte Bobcats. And you would be wrong: while the Bees have pretty much vanquished the Third-Quarter Drought™ — they outscored the 'Cats 34-24 in the third tonight — they managed to lose the other three quarters, and the game, 104-100, in front of a sparse crowd in the 13,000 range.

Charlotte's Raymond Felton and Gerald Wallace each dropped in 21 points; rookie Adam Morrison picked up 18 from off the bench, including 11 in the third quarter. And Emeka Okafor added a double-double — 16 points, 15 rebounds — and blocked five shots.

The Bees did generate some offense, and Chris Paul is scoring again: CP3 got 20. Desmond Mason added 17; David West and Tyson Chandler had 16 each. (And Chandler snagged 20 boards.)

It's the one true mystery this season: the Hornets play better against good teams than they do against mediocre (or worse) teams. Which means the next two games, against the Nets in Jersey and at the Ford against the Sonics, might be equally dreadful.

Posted at 8:33 PM to Net Proceeds