Hornets at Thunder
THE STORY: Offensive stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are the keys to the Oklahoma City Thunder's success - but the club has been displaying impressive defensive chops, as well. The Thunder look for their third consecutive win Wednesday night as they host the struggling New Orleans Hornets. Oklahoma City owns the best record in the Western Conference, thanks in large part to an offense that ranks fourth in the league at 99.2 points per game. Yet, it's the defense that deserves most of the credit for the team's previous two victories. Two days after limiting the New Jersey Nets to 74 points, the Thunder silenced the Detroit Pistons on the way to a 99-79 triumph. Those games represent the best defensive efforts of the season for the Thunder, who have won four straight home games by an average of 15 points. The Hornets are stuck in the worst funk in the league, losers of eight straight and owners of the worst record in the West. New Orleans looked set to end the slump Monday night, but were burned by a Tim Duncan 13-footer with 1.4 seconds remaining that handed San Antonio a 104-102 win.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, Cox Sports Television, Fox Sports Oklahoma
ABOUT THE HORNETS (3-14): Playing without standout shooting guard Eric Gordon - who has appeared in just two games this season as he battles knee soreness - has left the Hornets woefully short on offense. His absence has been especially noticeable over the last three games, in which New Orleans has lost by two points each time. Gordon, a key piece in the trade that sent point guard Chris Paul to the Clippers, averaged 22.3 points a season ago.
ABOUT THE THUNDER (14-3): Oklahoma City fans might as well get used to seeing their star players just 75 percent of the time. With the Thunder building a 51-21 second-quarter lead and cruising from there against the Pistons, the starting lineup - save for a two-minute appearance by Serge Ibaka - sat out the entire fourth quarter. It's the fourth consecutive home game Oklahoma City has built a large enough lead to give its starters the final 12 minutes off.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. The Thunder won the only previous meeting between the teams this season, prevailing 95-85 in New Orleans on Jan. 11.
2. Thanks to the recent string of home blowouts, Durant is averaging a career-low 36:12 per game. His career average is just under 38 minutes.