Hornets at Wizards
The Charlotte Hornets are facing an uphill climb in their bid to claim an Eastern Conference playoff berth and certainly will be counting heavily on Kemba Walker. The All-Star guard was stellar in Charlotte's first game after the break and will be shooting for another big performance in Friday's game against the host Washington Wizards.
Walker scored 14 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter on Thursday as the Hornets pulled away for a 111-96 home victory over Brooklyn. The standout point guard has recorded 30 or more points in five of his last 11 games, including efforts of 41 and 40. The Hornets have lost five consecutive games in Washington, and the Wizards are a hot squad as Thursday's 110-103 road victory over Cleveland was their eighth in the last 10 contests. Washington is thriving despite the absence of star point guard John Wall, who will be sidelined through at least mid-March as he recovers from knee surgery.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FS Southeast (Charlotte), NBCS Washington
ABOUT THE HORNETS (25-33): Dwight Howard collected 24 rebounds against the Nets for his fifth outing with 20 or more boards this season, and he also added 15 points. Howard has stood out in two games against Washington this season, with averages of 22 points and 14 rebounds, and his 26-point performance versus the Wizards on Nov. 22 matches his second-highest output of the season. "That's what he does. He gets every rebound, he dominates the paint," Walker told reporters after the win over Brooklyn. "It showed in his numbers. Twenty-four? That's unbelievable, man. We're going to need that from him every night if we want to make a push."
ABOUT THE WIZARDS (34-24): The victory over Cleveland impressed coach Scott Brooks as Washington had to fight off a strong fourth-quarter performance by LeBron James (14 points). "We hung together," Brooks told reporters. "We showed great resolve. That's what we talked about. Resiliency is what successful teams do in this league. We've been showing that. We've just got to keep doing it." The Wizards received a solid effort from Tomas Satoransky, who recorded 17 points and eight assists without committing a turnover.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Hornets averaged 131 points while winning each of this season's first two meetings - both at home.
2. Washington agreed to a 10-day contract with veteran PG Ramon Sessions to add depth at the position while Wall is sidelined.
3. Charlotte backup C Frank Kaminsky has gone 5-for-18 from the field over his last three games.