Hornets star guard Chris Paul scored 33 points along with 14 assists, seven rebounds and four steals to help the New Orleans, Hornets outperform the No. 2 seed Los Angeles, Lakers 109-100, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles April 17 in Game 1 of the opening round of the NBA Western Conference Playoffs.
Paul led five different Hornets players that scored double-digit points, including forward Carl Landry with 17 points and Fort Washington, Md. native Jarrett Jack, a guard, with 15 points off the bench.
Lakers star Kobe Bryant led the game with 34 points on 13-of-26 shooting and 7-of-8 from the free-throw line. But L.A. star forward Pau Gasol didn’t take many shots and finished with only eight points, as the defending champions trailed nearly the entire game.
The Hornets now move ahead 1-0 in the best-of-seven series. Game 2 will be aired on TNT Wednesday, April 20 at 10:30 p.m.