[Lefty Noob]

The Hornets have been one of the hottest teams in the NBA all season long, but they've dropped back to back games now, including a 112-103 loss to the Sacramento Kings last night. In fact, New Orleans trailed by as much as 26 at one point in that game. So why are they starting to cool off now?

NBA - New Orleans Hornets/Sacramento Kings Recap Friday February 1, 2008 - Yahoo! Sports

[ThePundit]

Originally Posted by Lefty Noob

The Hornets have been one of the hottest teams in the NBA all season long, but they've dropped back to back games now, including a 112-103 loss to the Sacramento Kings last night. In fact, New Orleans trailed by as much as 26 at one point in that game. So why are they starting to cool off now?

NBA - New Orleans Hornets/Sacramento Kings Recap Friday February 1, 2008 - Yahoo! Sports

Teams are ready for them, now.

The Hornets are finding that the higher you climb in the standings, the higher the intensity level you draw from your opponents on a nightly basis. As long as they can get to overtime, that might not be a problem.

After moving to the top of the Western Conference with a nine-game winning streak, the Hornets lost three straight thanks to inspired efforts by the Warriors, Kings, and Jazz.

"Opponents are going to look at the top teams in the league and try to measure themselves against them," forward Peja Stojakovic said. "They're going to play harder than normal and we've got to step up to the challenge."

Hornets Team Report - NBA - Yahoo! Sports

[azrael492]

They did pretty well last night taking the Suns to double overtime and winning.