Game Preview: Hornets At Kings

(AP) -- The Charlotte Hornets aren't doing much to help their playoff chances.

They're the only team that's lost to the reeling Sacramento Kings over the last two weeks.

Winless at the midway point of a five-game trip, the Hornets look to avenge last week's defeat to a Kings team that could be without All-Star DeMarcus Cousins on Friday night.

Tenth in the Eastern Conference - one-half game behind Boston and Indiana for the final playoff spot and 1 1/2 back of Miami for seventh place - Charlotte (29-37) has dropped four of five since going 5-0 to begin the month.

"Every game is a must win, and every game we lose puts more pressure on us," veteran guard Mo Williams said after Tuesday's 99-92 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.

One night after shooting 29.5 percent and scoring its fewest points of the season in a 94-66 defeat at Utah, the Hornets nearly erased a 22-point deficit, rallying to get within a point five times in the fourth quarter before eventually falling to the Clippers.

"We had a chance at the end, but things didn't workout for us," said center Al Jefferson, who had a team-high 21 points Tuesday. "I guarantee you that if we continue to play the way we played (Tuesday), we'll be OK."

While hustle could keep Charlotte in most games, to win it must improve offensively after averaging 86.8 points and 37.3 percent shooting in the last five contests. The Hornets averaged 105.6 and shot 49.5 percent over the previous five.

Charlotte made 45.2 percent from the field - its best mark in the last five games - against the Kings (22-45) on March 11, but Ben McLemore scored 27 points, Rudy Gay had 26 and Cousins added 20 and 14 rebounds to lift Sacramento to a 113-106 victory.

Cousins, who hit all four of his field-goal attempts during Sacramento's 35-point fourth quarter, has averaged 25.3 points, 14.0 rebounds, 3.0 steals and 3.0 assists in the last three against the Hornets. However, it's uncertain if a calf strain that forced him to miss Wednesday's 116-105 loss to the Clippers will keep him out of this contest.

Though the Kings shot 48.1 percent and held a 48-26 advantage in the paint without Cousins, they allowed Los Angeles to make 51.1 percent of its shots and hit 17 3-pointers. Sacramento has yielded averages of 114.9 points and 51.3 percent from the field while beating only Charlotte in the last nine games.

"There's a lot of frustration, there a lot of frazzled mentality with what's gone on this season and now we have some injuries with (Cousins)," coach George Karl said.

Back from a two-game absence due to a patellar tendon strain, Gay scored 23 points despite shooting 6 of 19 on Wednesday. He's averaged 27.0 points in his last six games and had 26 while going 9 of 17 from the field at Charlotte.

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist went 9 of 12 from the floor to finish with a season-high 23 points and added nine rebounds against the Kings last week.

Jefferson injured his calf and the area near the back of his knee in that meeting, but has missed only one game since. He scored 21 against the Clippers, and had 27 with nine boards in a 113-103 win at Sacramento on Jan. 4 of last season.

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