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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- The Charlotte Hornets were hoping for
more than a 16-point victory against Vancouver on Wednesday night.
"We wanted to go out and finish that team off in the first
quarter, and we didn't get the job done," Eddie Jones said after
the Hornets picked up the pace defensively in the third quarter,
holding Vancouver to four field goals and pulling away for an 89-73
victory.
|  | | Eddie Jones hits a reverse layup in front of Cherokee Parks for two of his team-high 14 points. |
The Hornets forced the Grizzlies into a season-high 23 turnovers
and converted them into 25 points, sending Vancouver to its 27th
consecutive loss on the road. Leading the way was Jones, who came
in averaging an NBA-best 2.9 steals and had five more against the
Grizzlies.
Charlotte harassed the Grizzlies into 39-percent shooting and
improved to 7-0 all-time against Vancouver. The Grizzlies scored 32
points in the second half.
"At least we can feel good about playing good defense and
causing a lot of turnovers," said Jones, who led six Charlotte
players in double figures with 14 points and added six assists.
"It's nice to know that the defense is working on a night when the
offense isn't."
Charlotte wound up with 15 turnovers and made just 12 of 35
field-goal attempts (34 percent) in the second half.
"This game was nasty. That's the only way to put it," said
David Wesley, who added 12 points and eight assists. "It was just
completely nasty, but you definitely want to come out on top in the
nasty ones."
The Hornets also got 12 points and 10 rebounds from Anthony Mason.
Vancouver, held to 4-of-18 shooting (22 percent) in the third
quarter, finished with its lowest point total of the season.
"We played good enough defense to win the game," coach Brian
Hill said after his Grizzlies dropped the second game on their
four-game road trip. "That's the third loss we've had where we
held the opposition under 90 points. We just couldn't get any shots
to fall in the third quarter."
The Grizzlies' Shareef Abdur-Rahim had 15 points and a
franchise-record 21 rebounds. Michael Dickerson had 16 points.
"Our shot selection and our not playing together was the
difference," Abdur-Rahim said. "We have to be committed to
playing together all of the time."
As poor as the Grizzlies' third-quarter shooting percentage
ended up, it took a rally to get it that high. With 3:21 left in
the quarter, Vancouver was trailing 57-47 and shooting 8.3 percent
-- 1-for-12.
Charlotte outscored the Grizzlies 19-12 in the quarter to go up
by 12. The Hornets pushed their lead to 14 midway through the
fourth, and Vancouver got no closer than 11 the rest of the way.
Game notes
There were 22 turnovers in the first half alone, with the
teams combining to lose the ball on seven consecutive possessions
early in the second quarter. ... Vancouver backup guard Brent Price
sat out to rest a strained left hamstring. Charlotte reserve guard
Ricky Davis, who came off the injured list earlier in the week after missing the first 11 games of the season following knee
surgery, did not play. ... Not only have the Grizzlies never
defeated Charlotte, but Vancouver has never come within five points
of doing it. The Hornets have won five games in the series by 10
points or more.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Vancouver Clubhouse
Charlotte Clubhouse
RECAPS
San Antonio 121
Boston 98
Washington 101
Philadelphia 93
Charlotte 89
Vancouver 73
Miami 93
Atlanta 91
Orlando 112
Dallas 100
Milwaukee 102
Chicago 95
Portland 88
Minnesota 81
Denver 109
Toronto 84
New Jersey 92
Golden State 84
LA Lakers 90
Utah 82
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