It took just one home game for the Hive to come alive and welcome the team’s biggest offseason pickup. Okafor had a stellar final two minutes of action.
The new Bee on the block, emphaticaly put down a Chris Paul miss, giving the Hornets the lead. Okafor then knocked the ball out of a King’s player creating a turnover with the Hornets up by just a point and 15.1 seconds to play. After a pair of CP3 free throws, Okafor blocked Sacramento’s Kevin Martin attempt at a game tying three point shot in the final seconds to secure the win, 97-93.
Okafor finished with 11 points, 13 rebounds, and four blocks, his second straight double-double. Paul lead the Hornets with 31 points and 4 assists. Two other Hornets scored in double digits, West had 13 and Julian Wright had 11.
The game was tight throughout, in fact both teams played to a 50-50 tie at the half, with the Kings taking the first quarter 27-25, and the Hornets edging out a 25-23 2nd quarter. Sacramento took the 3rd quarter 25-22, with the Hornets outscoring the Kings 25-17 in the final period.
The Hornets bench responded with a better performance. At San Antonio, the Spurs reserves outplayed Byron Scott’s non starters 61-19. Friday night, the Hornets bench put in 24 points on the night, while the Kings reserves combined for 23 points. Peja Stojakovic had 10 points off the bench including a pair of 3-pointers.
The win improves the Hornets to 1-1 on the year while the Kings drop to 0-2. The Hornets take to the road to face the Celtics in Boston on Sunday, 5pm tip time. Boston is undefeated at 3-0 following a win over the Bulls at home on Friday night 118-90. Boston tipped off the season with a 95-89 win over Cleveland, and a 92-59 win over Charlotte.
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