Hornets Buzzing Back to Action

After a shaky start to the 2009-10 season, the New Orleans Hornets are steadily improving to the form that won them the 2007-08 championship in the Southwest Division title of the National Basketball Association’s Western Conference.

Under new head coach Jeff Bower, the Hornets reached the .500 mark in the first week of January. By the last week of the month they were four games above .500 and only five games out of first place in their division. With a 16-4 home record in the New Orleans Arena and the best inter-conference record in their division by the end of January, the team is positioning itself to make the cut for the NBA playoffs in April.

The Hornets are making a serious push in the regular season’s final two months. In the starting lineup are forwards David West and Peja Stojakovic and center Emeka Okafor. Aaron Gray, at 7’0”, recently acquired in trade from the Chicago Bulls, is expected to get some playing time at center and the Hornets hope he will help the team recover more rebounds than they have been getting lately. The guard position vacated by the traded Devin Brown will be alternated between Marcus Thornton and Darren Collison.

The Hornets home schedule through the rest of 2009-10 looks like this:

The official season runs until April and playoffs continue into June. Hornets home games are held in the New Orleans Arena, a state-of-the-art sports venue adjacent to the Louisiana Superdome in Downtown New Orleans, just minutes away from the French Quarter.

Come cheer the Hornets to victory alongside their spirited dance team, the Honeybees, along with Hugo the Hornet, the team’s energetic mascot. Between the cheerleaders, the mascot and other special events and on-court displays during timeouts and in between periods, a Hornets game is more than just a game: It’s good old New Orleans-style entertainment!

Good seats are nearly always available for Hornets home games. Call Ticketmaster for tickets at 504-522-5555 or go to www.ticketmaster.com.