Hornets Slip Past Lakers, Lead Series 1-0

April 17, 2011 - In what was a stunning opening series game that nobody really saw coming, Chris Paul led his New Orleans over the Lakers with 33 points, 14 assists, and 7 rebounds. The Hornets got the win with a 109-100 score. Kobe Bryant scored 34 points on 13-26 FG in the game, but it wasn't enough to stop the high energy Hornets who were balanced by the low energy Lakers.

Despite the effort of Kobe, the Lakers fell short to the Hornets

This was game was a shock, primarily because the Hornets had not beaten the Lakers in the regular season. In fact, the Lakers best shot percentages in games were against New Orleans. Add to that the fact that the Lakers have two big men in Bynum and Gasol facing off against the smaller team in the Hornets. But it was a David vs. Goliath night. The Lakers struggled in the second half, never gaining the lead. They also settled for too many bad looks outside as opposed to driving in on the smaller defense of the Hornets.

Chris Paul completely dominated, and not even Andrew Bynum could stop him inside

Artest pulled the Lakers within 4 with only 3 minutes left, but that's when Chris Paul answered with 8 consecutive points that put the lead away for good. Artest ended up finishing with 16 points, and Odom had 10. Pau Gasol had a measley 8 points and 6 rebounds on 2-9 FG from the floor. The Lakers just weren't physical. I don't think they gave it their all since they were just taking the Hornets lightly. Well, after the game Kobe Bryant was very upset with himself and his team. I expect the Black Mamba to go into full overdrive for the next game and I'm expecting a huge, dominating win by the Lakers. The next game is Wednesday night 4/20, 10:30 pm ET on TNT.