Greivis Vasquez

by Kerem Ozkan

In the most entertaining game of the Hornets’ young season, the boys pulled off a clutch victory against the Los Angeles Clippers, 105-98. New Orleans thus ended a seven-game losing streak on the final stop of a tough four-game road trip. They are now 4-9 for the season.

The Hornets played with a very tangible edge tonight, bringing intensity and composure throughout the game. Greivis Vasquez — who was very vocal in his displeasure after last night’s blowout loss to the Nuggets — set the tone tonight, scoring 25 points on 13 shots and looking completely fearless against former Hornet, Chris Paul, the league’s best point guard. He added 10 assists and six rebounds, making his eight turnovers a forgetable asterisk on a great night.

Both teams were lights out from the field, particularly from the three. The Hornets were 15-25, the Clips 18-37 from behind the arc. That total includes the Clippers’ astounding four missed three-point shots with a minute to go that would have cut the lead to three. 

Jason Smith was perhaps the Hornets' MVP, playing a huge part in holding Blake Griffin to a career-low four points on 1-for-9 shooting. He added a very efficient 17 points to boot, making up for a poor showing from Robin Lopez.

Austin Rivers was also surprisingly brilliant against the Clippers’ star bench player, Jamal Crawford (who happens to be precisely the kind of instant scoring guard Hornets fans can only hope Rivers becomes). Rivers had been terrible in the starting lineup, but even worse off the bench. We’ll take 14 points on nine shots any day from the young gun. Six assists, too.

For the Clippers, Chris Paul and Caron Butler were both brilliant, combining for an incredible 21-for-38 shooting and 53 points.

But the Hornets were just tough enough on the defensive end, contesting jump shots and protecting the perimeter. The Clippers were only 19-for-42 from two-point range. DeAndre Jordan — a potential mismatch for the short-stacked Hornets on paper — inexplicably had one rebound in 15 minutes.

Later this week, the Hornets finally return to New Orleans for a five-game homestand. We start Wednesday with a second shot against the Utah Jazz, who the Hornets narrowly defeated (88-86) in the teams’ first meeting.

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