| Charlotte Bobcats News: |
| Throughout training camp and the preseason, any NBA head coach or general manager will probably say the same two things if asked what is most important heading into the regular season -showing improvement and staying healthy.
Bobcats Head Coach Sam Vincent spoke often about this in training camp and into Charlotte's first handful of preseason games, noting how fortune his team was to be relatively injury free. With the exception of Sean May (microfracture surgery on his knee) and Othella Harrington (knee), neither of whom suffered their injuries in training camp, Charlotte seemed in relatively good health as the November 2 season opener against Milwaukee at Charlotte Bobcats Arena crept closer. Hopefully that will still be the case for Vincent and the Bobcats following Saturday's 113-93 loss to the Lakers at the Los Angeles Shootout. Trailing 77-61 with 5:26 remaining in the third quarter, Bobcats guard/forward Adam Morrison stepped out onto the left baseline in an attempt to guard Luke Walton, but when Walton made a quick jab step, Morrison quickly tried to change direction and his left knee seemed to give way. The extent of Morrison's injury is not yet known, but it is currently being treated as a left knee sprain. Morrison cried out in obvious pain when he hit the floor and had to be carried off the court, but X-rays taken Saturday night were negative. He is expected to have an MRI on Sunday, so Charlotte should know more before the weekend is out. "Hopefully it's something minor but I felt a pop, so I'm worried right now," Morrison said. "Hopefully, I'm lucky or something -we'll see (Sunday)." While Morrison's injury was obviously Saturday's focal point for Bobcats fans, Gerald Wallace continued to be the running story on the court the past couple of weeks. Coming off a 34-point, 10-rebound performance against Atlanta on Thursday, Wallace finished with a game-high 28 points on 8-13 shooting from the field, 2-5 from long range and 10-11 from the free-throw line. He also added four assists and three steals to go with one rebound. |
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| Tony Parker scored 24 points, half of them coming in the decisive third quarter, and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Charlotte Bobcats 93-76 Friday night.
After trailing 52-42 at halftime, Charlotte got its deficit down to 60-54 midway through the third on a short jumper by Emeka Okafor. But the Bobcats went scoreless and committed six turnovers during the final 6:05 of the quarter. Parker shot 6-for-7 for the Spurs in the third period, which ended with a 12-0 run by San Antonio. Parker scored three of those six baskets and assisted on two others. San Antonio's lead widened to as many as 23 points in the fourth. Tim Duncan added 19 points for the Spurs, while Devin Brown had 15 and Robert Horry 11. The Spurs, playing their fifth straight game without injured swingman Manu Ginobili, improved their NBA-leading record to 50-15. They are 31-3 at home, also best in the league. The loss was the ninth straight for the Bobcats and their 18th in the past 20 games. They are 2-30 on the road. Primoz Brezec led Charlotte with 18 points, and Jason Hart and Melvin Ely each scored 10. Okafor, the team's top scorer at 15 points per game, finished with 7 points on 3-for-13 shooting and had 12 rebounds. As a team, Charlotte shot 37.3 percent (28-for-75) from the floor. The Bobcats went up 13-9 in the first on a 3-pointer by Jason Kapono before a short turnaround jumper by Duncan started an 11-3 run that put the Spurs ahead by four late in the period. Charlotte made its first three shots in the second, tying the game at 26 on a jump hook by Ely. A dunk by Duncan with 2:57 left in the half began a 9-2 San Antonio burst that ended the half at 52-42. The Bobcats missed their final seven attempts before the break. Notes: In reaching 50 wins in 65 games, San Antonio was three games quicker than their previous best, set in 1994-95 and tied the following season. ... Dion Glover, signed Thursday to a 10-day contract, had two points, four rebounds and two assists in 12 minutes for San Antonio. ... The Spurs have held opponents under 40 percent shooting 25 times this season. ... Charlotte's starting backcourt of Keith Bogans and Brevin Knight shot a combined 3-for-15 from the field. |