http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/11632945p-12522410c.html
Outmanned, without a chance
Hornets are so banged up, Adelman feels sorry for them
By Martin McNeal -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Thursday, December 2, 2004
NEW ORLEANS - After the fact, Kings coach Rick Adelman admitted he felt sorry for counterpart Byron Scott and his struggling New Orleans Hornets.
The Kings won their fourth straight road game and ninth in their 10th overall by punishing the injury-abused Hornets 94-81 Wednesday night at the New Orleans Arena.
"Now, yeah," Adelman said when asked if he had said earlier he felt sorry for the Hornets and Scott, a former Kings assistant coach under Adelman.
One of the NBA credos is that no one will will feel sorry for a team when it's down, but this was a bit ridiculous.
Instead of having point guard Baron Davis (inflamed disc), center Jamaal Magloire (fractured right ring finger), forward Jamal Mashburn (knee irritation that has required microfracture surgery) and swingman Rodney Rogers (sprained left knee), Adelman watched Scott try to make chicken soup out of chick-fil-a.
"You lose basically your top three scorers, and Rodney Rogers is out," Adelman lamented. "That's really hard. You're asking guys to step up and do things that they're not accustomed to (doing). I've watched their games on the road, and they've never quit. I thought they played hard tonight. It was a scary game for me.
"They have a lot of solid veterans who have the reputations for playing hard, and unfortunately for them, they didn't make shots."
While Junior Harrington and Lee Nailon tried - and failed - to fill the roles of Davis and Mashburn, the Kings moved the ball and themselves, then followed that movement by making shots.
Sacramento shot 34 of 70 (48.6 percent) from the field and 20 of 23 from the line to overcome an uncharacteristic 18 turnovers; the Kings also surrendered 21 offensive rebounds, a season high for an opponent.
Sacramento missed 10 of its 16 field-goal attempts and committed three turnovers in the first quarter, which finished with the Hornets leading 23-21.
Fortunately for the Kings, the Hornets spent their first 13 possessions of the second period like an alcoholic dropping his last bottle of wine. Those possessions resulted in nine straight missed shots, four turnovers and a 19-0 Kings run for a 40-23 lead.
Not until shooting guard David Wesley's jump shot at the 5:15 mark did the Hornets score in the period.
For the mathematically challenged, that's 6:45 of scoreless basketball.
"In that second quarter, they got hot and we got cold," said Scott, whose team is 1-13 overall and 0-7 at home.
"That was basically the ballgame," Scott said. "We were fighting uphill all night long."
Fighting uphill may be the season-long mantra for the Hornets, who have lost five straight after gaining their only win Nov. 22 at Utah.
For the rest of the game, the Hornets climbed within single digits only once.
The scariest parts of the evening for the Kings - both self-inflicted - came in the second quarter.
First, Mike Bibby suddenly went down on the sideline; he came up seriously limping and headed directly to the bench and eventually to the locker room with a sprained right ankle.
"It felt like I hit the bone on the floor," Bibby said. "It scared me. I really don't know what happened."
Bibby returned and despite 1-for-9 shooting and only three points tied for the team high with seven rebounds and had five assists.
Minutes after Bibby limped off, Bobby Jackson, who made his first six shots before missing in the fourth, nearly took out Hornets play-by-play man Steve Albert while going for a sideline steal.
Jackson wound up with a gash on his right shin.
However, Jackson was fine, if bloodied, and continued.
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Outmanned, without a chance
Hornets are so banged up, Adelman feels sorry for them
By Martin McNeal -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Thursday, December 2, 2004
NEW ORLEANS - After the fact, Kings coach Rick Adelman admitted he felt sorry for counterpart Byron Scott and his struggling New Orleans Hornets.
The Kings won their fourth straight road game and ninth in their 10th overall by punishing the injury-abused Hornets 94-81 Wednesday night at the New Orleans Arena.
"Now, yeah," Adelman said when asked if he had said earlier he felt sorry for the Hornets and Scott, a former Kings assistant coach under Adelman.
One of the NBA credos is that no one will will feel sorry for a team when it's down, but this was a bit ridiculous.
Instead of having point guard Baron Davis (inflamed disc), center Jamaal Magloire (fractured right ring finger), forward Jamal Mashburn (knee irritation that has required microfracture surgery) and swingman Rodney Rogers (sprained left knee), Adelman watched Scott try to make chicken soup out of chick-fil-a.
"You lose basically your top three scorers, and Rodney Rogers is out," Adelman lamented. "That's really hard. You're asking guys to step up and do things that they're not accustomed to (doing). I've watched their games on the road, and they've never quit. I thought they played hard tonight. It was a scary game for me.
"They have a lot of solid veterans who have the reputations for playing hard, and unfortunately for them, they didn't make shots."
While Junior Harrington and Lee Nailon tried - and failed - to fill the roles of Davis and Mashburn, the Kings moved the ball and themselves, then followed that movement by making shots.
Sacramento shot 34 of 70 (48.6 percent) from the field and 20 of 23 from the line to overcome an uncharacteristic 18 turnovers; the Kings also surrendered 21 offensive rebounds, a season high for an opponent.
Sacramento missed 10 of its 16 field-goal attempts and committed three turnovers in the first quarter, which finished with the Hornets leading 23-21.
Fortunately for the Kings, the Hornets spent their first 13 possessions of the second period like an alcoholic dropping his last bottle of wine. Those possessions resulted in nine straight missed shots, four turnovers and a 19-0 Kings run for a 40-23 lead.
Not until shooting guard David Wesley's jump shot at the 5:15 mark did the Hornets score in the period.
For the mathematically challenged, that's 6:45 of scoreless basketball.
"In that second quarter, they got hot and we got cold," said Scott, whose team is 1-13 overall and 0-7 at home.
"That was basically the ballgame," Scott said. "We were fighting uphill all night long."
Fighting uphill may be the season-long mantra for the Hornets, who have lost five straight after gaining their only win Nov. 22 at Utah.
For the rest of the game, the Hornets climbed within single digits only once.
The scariest parts of the evening for the Kings - both self-inflicted - came in the second quarter.
First, Mike Bibby suddenly went down on the sideline; he came up seriously limping and headed directly to the bench and eventually to the locker room with a sprained right ankle.
"It felt like I hit the bone on the floor," Bibby said. "It scared me. I really don't know what happened."
Bibby returned and despite 1-for-9 shooting and only three points tied for the team high with seven rebounds and had five assists.
Minutes after Bibby limped off, Bobby Jackson, who made his first six shots before missing in the fourth, nearly took out Hornets play-by-play man Steve Albert while going for a sideline steal.
Jackson wound up with a gash on his right shin.
However, Jackson was fine, if bloodied, and continued.
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