原文出自nola.com http://www.nola.com/hornets/t-p/index.ssf?/base/sports-1/1105859057283100.xml Bench trio sparking Hornets' recent surge Dickau, Andersen, Nachbar confident Sunday, January 16, 2005 By Jimmy Smith Staff writer TORONTO -- It's too early to start chanting "break up the Hornets." But it appears Coach Byron Scott has settled on an eight-man rotation in recent games, with Dan Dickau, Chris Andersen and Bostjan Nachbar coming off the bench. And the success those three have achieved during this sudden resurrection from the netherworld of NBA oblivion can directly be attributed to just how well that trio plays. Example No. 1: In last week's stunning overtime upset of the Sacramento Kings, Dickau, Andersen and Nachbar combined to score 41 points to 18 for the Kings' reserves. In Friday night's victory over the Portland Trail Blazers, Dickau had a career-high 25 and Andersen had 15 points and a game-high 15 rebounds in 27 minutes of playing time. Nachbar's only points of the game, a 3-pointer with 2:20 to go in the first half, pulled New Orleans even at 56 and kept a late second-quarter surge alive. The Blazers' bench scored 19 points. As the Hornets embark on a brief two-game road swing against ripe-for-the-picking Eastern Conference foes Toronto at 1 p.m. today and Philadelphia on Monday afternoon, the intrepid trio will have much to say about whether New Orleans can put together the season's first three-game winning streak. "I think it has helped," Dickau said of the bench's recent contributions. "I know Bird (Andersen) played well (against the Blazers). He hit a couple of elbow jumpers and he's such a havoc on the board offensively and defensively. "He got to the offensive boards and put some foul pressure on them, and then knocked down the free throws (seven of eight, including five of six in the fourth quarter)." Before Friday night's win, Andersen was shooting 61 percent from the field in his previous eight games, a bright spot for a team that ranks last in the league in field-goal shooting. Since being acquired from the Mavericks in exchange for Darrell Armstrong on Dec. 3, Dickau has scored 13 or more points in 11 of the previous 21 games, leading the Hornets in scoring six times. "Me and Dan and Boki (Nachbar) coming off the bench, we've got to keep doing that night in and night out to get wins," said Andersen. "The starters are doing an excellent job lately, and we've just got to pick up where they left off, come in there and do that and play real well." After suffering through several miserable losing streaks this season (eight, 11 and 10 games), the Hornets have won three of their past four. And today's opponent, the Raptors minus the departed Vince Carter have the look of a possible victim, even though Toronto has won three of its past four games at the Air Canada Centre. "Our guys are more comfortable and confident in what we're doing," Hornets coach Byron Scott said. "They're starting to understand what it takes to close out games." And it helps, Scott said, that finally the Hornets can put the same starting five on the court, even though it's missing center Jamaal Magloire (broken finger), as a result forcing power forward P.J. Brown to play out of position in the post. New Orleans' current frontliners Baron Davis, J.R. Smith, Rodney Rogers, Lee Nailon and Brown have started seven consecutive games, the most of any lineup this season. That group also has the best record of any starting lineup: 3-4. "I look at all home games as games that we should win," Scott said. "I look at road games, if you've got two of them, you want to go out there and get a split. And if we get the first one, it takes the pressure off for the second one. "The guys are starting to see the light. We're playing good and we're getting healthier." And getting help from three key reserves. . . . . . . . Jimmy Smith can be reached at [email protected] or (504) 826-3814. --

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