After enduring an 18-game losing streak it seems that the Charlotte Bobcats have turned the page and put that miserable chapter behind them. With two wins in their last three games Charlotte hopes for some home cooking to keep the momentum going.
Standing in the way is a Utah Jazz team that comes in as winners of three of their last four games and defeating the Dallas Mavericks 100-94 at home two nights ago. The Jazz however have an unflattering 7-14 record on the road and are losers of six of their last 10 games.
The Bobcats are coming off an impressive overtime victory against the Detroit Pistons where Kemba Walker extended the game into the extra period with a floater at the buzzer. Charlotte was then able to pull away 108-101 at the Palace at Auburn Hills. Walker led the team with 20 points and dished out seven assists. He got a boost from back-court mate Ben Gordon's 18 points off the bench.
Bismack Biyombo since entering the starting lineup 15 games ago, has become a stabilizing force for the Bobcats. He ended the game against the Pistons with 10 points to go along with 17 huge rebounds, including seven on the offensive glass. In his second game back from injury, Tyrus Thomas managed double figure scoring with 13 points to go along with five boards, a steal and a blocked shot.
Byron Mullens return from an ankle injury he suffered in late December is unknown, so coach Mike Dunlap has went with Thomas and Biyombo to sure up his front court. The kind of shot blocking and athleticism that these two provide will be needed with the likes of Al Jeferson and Paul Milsap coming to town. Derrick Favors is no slouch in the paint either. Jefferson leads the Jazz in scoring (16.7 points) and rebounding (9.8). Milsap is right behind Jefferson averaging just under 15 points per game.
With the kind of production that coach Dunlap has gotten from his bench of late, the Bobcats have a very good chance to get their third victory in four tries. That task will not be an easy one considering that the Jazz come into tonight's game as the 11th ranked team in the NBA in scoring (98.2 points). This means Ramon Sessions (14.5 points), Gerald Henderson (13.5) and Gordon (13.5) will have have to provide all the ammunition they can muster.
Charlotte knows that they have three road games in four days coming up and that puts a premium on securing victories at home. This game can be had, but will coach Dunlap and his Bobcats pull all the right strings when they play the Jazz tonight?
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