ProdigalSun
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Road Trip Rolls Into Phoenix
After snapping their 12-game road losing streak in Portland on Wednesday, the Bobcats will be looking for similar results on Saturday as they battle it out in the desert with the Phoenix Suns.
Fans can catch all the action at 9:00 p.m. on WJZY and WNMX 106.1 FM.
Season Series (Phoenix leads 1-0)
The Bobcats will be looking to draw even in the series after Phoenix captured a 110-100 victory at Charlotte Bobcats Arena on December 30.
Phoenix’s win was keyed by last year’s MVP Steve Nash, who finished with 24 points and 13 assists and was the catalyst in a 16-5 Suns run to end the game. Guard Eddie House earned scoring honors, exploding for 26 points in 27 minutes, including 12 in the fourth quarter.
Gerald Wallace finished with 15 points and nine rebounds for Charlotte, while Brevin Knight added a double-double with 10 points and 10 assists.
Charlotte (15-41)
This will be the third game of a six-game road trip for the Bobcats. Charlotte will be looking for its second straight road win after defeating the Portland Trail Blazers 110-106 on Wednesday.
The win was the Bobcats fifth road win of the season and marked the first time this year Charlotte has defeated a Western Conference opponent on the road. Charlotte has now surpassed last year’s road win total. They finished their inaugural campaign with a 4-37 road record.
Guard Kareem Rush came up big for Charlotte in the win. After averaging just 6.1 points on .290 (20-69) shooting from the floor in the previous nine games, Rush exploded for 28 points on 12-14 shooting in Portland.
The Bobcats also got a boost as their energy guy, Gerald Wallace, returned after missing the previous 15 games with injury. Wallace didn’t miss a beat, posting 15 points on 5-8 shooting along with seven rebounds, two steals and four blocks in his return.
Charlotte also finished the game shooting 51.1 percent from the field, marking the fifth time the team has shot 50 percent or better in a game this season. The Bobcats are 4-1 when shooting 50 percent or better. The team also posted over 100 points in the game -- a number that has become indicative of their success. The team is 12-7 in games when it reaches the century mark and has averaged 110.3 points in its last four wins.
Jumaine Jones has also become a consistent threat for Charlotte. During February, the 6-8 guard/forward has averaged 15.4 points and 7.6 rebounds in 10 games. Prior to February, Jones averaged 7.7 points and 4.1 rebounds in 40 games.
Phoenix (36-17)
The Suns, behind the play of Nash and All-Star Shawn Marion, are once again one of the top teams in the league with a 36-17 record. They currently lead the Pacific Division and boast the third-best record in the Western Conference trailing only the Mavericks and the Spurs. Phoenix has accomplished this without the services of All-Star Amare Stoudemire, who has missed the entire season after undergoing knee surgery on October 11.
Phoenix has won eight of its last nine games and is currently in the midst of a five-game winning streak, the longest active win streak in the NBA.
The Suns’ success has come behind the efforts of their high powered offense. They lead the league in scoring, averaging 107.0 points as well as assists with 26.8 per game. This season, over 65 percent of their field goals have come off of assists, and they have recorded more assists than their opponent in all but three games.
In their most recent game, the Suns posted a 103-94 win over the Boston Celtics on Wednesday. Marion posted a career-best 44 points on 68.2 percent (16-22) shooting along with 15 rebounds in the win.
Marion leads the team and is ranked among the league’s best, averaging 21.6 points, 11.9 rebounds, 2.00 steals and 1.91 blocks in 41.3 minutes. He is one of only three players in the league to average at least 20 points and 10 rebounds. Nash is leading the league in assists for the second straight year, averaging 10.9 and is the second leading scorer for the Suns posting 19.2 points per game.
Five other Suns players are also averaging double-figures including Raja Bell, Leandro Barbosa, Boris Diaw, Eddie House and James Jones.
Diaw is having a career season for the Suns. After averaging 4.6 points in his first two seasons in the league, he is averaging 12.2 points this year.
Nash should really sit this one out..
After snapping their 12-game road losing streak in Portland on Wednesday, the Bobcats will be looking for similar results on Saturday as they battle it out in the desert with the Phoenix Suns.
Fans can catch all the action at 9:00 p.m. on WJZY and WNMX 106.1 FM.
Season Series (Phoenix leads 1-0)
The Bobcats will be looking to draw even in the series after Phoenix captured a 110-100 victory at Charlotte Bobcats Arena on December 30.
Phoenix’s win was keyed by last year’s MVP Steve Nash, who finished with 24 points and 13 assists and was the catalyst in a 16-5 Suns run to end the game. Guard Eddie House earned scoring honors, exploding for 26 points in 27 minutes, including 12 in the fourth quarter.
Gerald Wallace finished with 15 points and nine rebounds for Charlotte, while Brevin Knight added a double-double with 10 points and 10 assists.
Charlotte (15-41)
This will be the third game of a six-game road trip for the Bobcats. Charlotte will be looking for its second straight road win after defeating the Portland Trail Blazers 110-106 on Wednesday.
The win was the Bobcats fifth road win of the season and marked the first time this year Charlotte has defeated a Western Conference opponent on the road. Charlotte has now surpassed last year’s road win total. They finished their inaugural campaign with a 4-37 road record.
Guard Kareem Rush came up big for Charlotte in the win. After averaging just 6.1 points on .290 (20-69) shooting from the floor in the previous nine games, Rush exploded for 28 points on 12-14 shooting in Portland.
The Bobcats also got a boost as their energy guy, Gerald Wallace, returned after missing the previous 15 games with injury. Wallace didn’t miss a beat, posting 15 points on 5-8 shooting along with seven rebounds, two steals and four blocks in his return.
Charlotte also finished the game shooting 51.1 percent from the field, marking the fifth time the team has shot 50 percent or better in a game this season. The Bobcats are 4-1 when shooting 50 percent or better. The team also posted over 100 points in the game -- a number that has become indicative of their success. The team is 12-7 in games when it reaches the century mark and has averaged 110.3 points in its last four wins.
Jumaine Jones has also become a consistent threat for Charlotte. During February, the 6-8 guard/forward has averaged 15.4 points and 7.6 rebounds in 10 games. Prior to February, Jones averaged 7.7 points and 4.1 rebounds in 40 games.
Phoenix (36-17)
The Suns, behind the play of Nash and All-Star Shawn Marion, are once again one of the top teams in the league with a 36-17 record. They currently lead the Pacific Division and boast the third-best record in the Western Conference trailing only the Mavericks and the Spurs. Phoenix has accomplished this without the services of All-Star Amare Stoudemire, who has missed the entire season after undergoing knee surgery on October 11.
Phoenix has won eight of its last nine games and is currently in the midst of a five-game winning streak, the longest active win streak in the NBA.
The Suns’ success has come behind the efforts of their high powered offense. They lead the league in scoring, averaging 107.0 points as well as assists with 26.8 per game. This season, over 65 percent of their field goals have come off of assists, and they have recorded more assists than their opponent in all but three games.
In their most recent game, the Suns posted a 103-94 win over the Boston Celtics on Wednesday. Marion posted a career-best 44 points on 68.2 percent (16-22) shooting along with 15 rebounds in the win.
Marion leads the team and is ranked among the league’s best, averaging 21.6 points, 11.9 rebounds, 2.00 steals and 1.91 blocks in 41.3 minutes. He is one of only three players in the league to average at least 20 points and 10 rebounds. Nash is leading the league in assists for the second straight year, averaging 10.9 and is the second leading scorer for the Suns posting 19.2 points per game.
Five other Suns players are also averaging double-figures including Raja Bell, Leandro Barbosa, Boris Diaw, Eddie House and James Jones.
Diaw is having a career season for the Suns. After averaging 4.6 points in his first two seasons in the league, he is averaging 12.2 points this year.
Nash should really sit this one out..
