Music: {allcanada} Bargnani questionable vs. Hornets

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

{allcanada} Bargnani questionable vs. Hornets

The New Orleans Hornets have struggled on the road against Western Conference opponents lately. It's been a different story when they've traveled to face teams from the East.

The Hornets look to get off to a positive start to their five-game trip when they face the lowly Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night.

Watch the game tonight live on Sportsnet ONE at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT.

The Raptors (16-44) gave up another lead -- this time a 19-point first-quarter edge -- in a 114-96 loss to Dallas on Sunday. Without leading scorer Andrea Bargnani (flu-like symptoms), Toronto was outscored by 25 in the final 24 minutes.

The Raptors have lost 20 of 23.

"They were just picking us apart," said point guard Jose Calderon, who finished with 15 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. "... We stopped them in the first half but in the second we couldn't stop it."

Calderon went scoreless Jan. 17 but had 13 assists and five boards.

If Bargnani can't play Tuesday, the Raptors will need guard DeMar DeRozan to continue his hot streak. DeRozan is averaging 18.9 points and 51.5 percent shooting in 11 games this month, and he scored a team-best 23 in the last matchup with the Hornets.

The Raptors won 98-92 on Dec. 20, 2009, in the teams' last meeting in Toronto.

New Orleans will try to sweep the season series for the second time in three years.

New Orleans (35-26), battling for the fifth spot in the West, has dropped five of its last six road games against conference opponents. The Hornets, though, have gone 5-1 in their last six away from home against East foes and are 17-7 versus teams from that conference overall.

New Orleans begins this trip - its longest remaining road stretch of the season - after falling 91-89 to Houston on Sunday. Playing their first game since Jan. 30 with Emeka Okafor and David West both in the lineup, the Hornets managed 34 second-half points after leading by 16 in the third quarter.

Okafor was sidelined the first 10 games this month with a strained left hip, while West missed a 95-81 win at Minnesota on Friday due to a death in his family.

"Thirty-four second-half points is nonsense," coach Monty Williams said. "We didn't run our offensive sets hard. We walked the ball up and looked like an old team."

The Hornets lead the West in scoring defence at 92.6 points per game, but they've scored 100 points once in 12 contests this month.

The struggles of All-Star point guard Chris Paul haven't helped. He's scored 12.5 points per game -- 3.6 fewer than his season average -- over the last eight contests while shooting 34.4 percent from the field.

Paul, who's shooting 47.0 percent on the season, went 2 of 12 and matched a season low with six points Sunday.

"I couldn't make a shot," he said. "I've got to do my part."

Despite missing all but one of his eight shots and scoring six points, Paul did his part in an 85-81 home win over Toronto on Jan. 17. He recorded 11 assists to help New Orleans overcome a 12-point second-half deficit and avoid a third straight loss in the series.