QUARTER-BY-QUARTER ANALYSIS
First quarter: The Bobcats got their starting lineup back in order after a series of adjustments due to injuries and illness. It didn’t help much in the early going, though Sacramento was missing starters Brad Miller (calf) and Peja Stojakovic (strained hamstring). The hot shooting of Kenny Thomas helped create a seven-point lead (13-6). The Kings, hitting in the 60-plus percent range for much of the quarter, later led by a high of eight points and maintained that margin until the late minutes of the period. Keith Bogans (seven points in the quarter) and Melvin Ely (six) came off the bench and bolstered the scoring, backing up center Primoz Brezec (six points). Bogans’ three-pointer spiced a 7-0 Charlotte run as the game tightened, and his layup with 21.8 seconds to play gave the Bobcats a 27-26 end-of-quarter lead. The Kings outshot the Bobcats 57.1 percent to 50.0 and outrebounded them 13-9 but hurt themselves with six turnovers, leading to eight Charlotte points.

Second quarter: Gerald Wallace celebrated his first matchup against his former team with a break-out second quarter. After missing a previous game due to an injury, Wallace scored eight points, pulled in three of his six first-half rebounds and had three steals to spark the Bobcats. They got balanced scoring (Brezec added six points in the quarter and Brevin Knight five) and improved shooting (54.5 percent) as they played with a lead for more than 11 of the 12 minutes. Much of the scoring came down low with the Bobcats dominating, 28-18, in the paint. Their defense limited the Kings to 36.8 percent accuracy from the floor and helped create six more turnovers in the second. Overall Charlotte scored 18 points off a dozen Sacramento turnovers in the half. A 10-1 run in just over three minutes gave the Bobcats a double-digit lead, 51-41, with 1:52 to play. A Brezec jumper just before the buzzer left them in front 55-45 at halftime.

Third quarter: Four different players figured in the scoring as Charlotte ran off seven unanswered points to open the period. With the Kings coming up empty on their first five possessions the Bobcats sent their lead soaring to 17, 62-45, on a Wallace fast break layup with 10:26 left. The prosperity didn’t last. The Kings twice cut the gap to 12, then, with Charlotte ahead 66-52, they made their move. They scored eight consecutive points while the Bobcats were going scoreless for almost four minutes. The turnaround left Sacramento trailing by only six, 66-60, with 3:04 remaining. After a timeout the Bobcats came back to life with Brezec scoring a rebound basket and a wing jumper and, with 0:00.2 left, Emeka Okafor drilling a three-pointer. The Kings had gone without a point for the final 3:04 and Charlotte led 73-60.

Fourth quarter: Charlotte struck first, lifting its lead back to 15 at 75-60 with 11:27 to play. But Sacramento finally began forcing the issue, going on a 12-2 run, capped by a Mike Bibby three-pointer, that reduced the Bobcats’ lead to single digits (five, at 77-72). Wallace and Knight returned to the lineup during the Kings’ surge and soon began making an impact. Wallace scored on a driving dunk, then took a pass from Knight for a fast break basket. Kareem Rush followed with a wing jumper and Charlotte was back up by 11, 83-72, with 5:58 to play. The margin fluctuated between 12 and eight as the clock ticked down, and the Bobcats went into the final three minutes ahead by a dozen, 88-76. The Kings cut it briefly to eight with 1:55 to play, only to see Knight hit a wing jumper off the dribble to take the lead back to 10 at 0:58.2. Fourteen seconds later Knight closed out the Charlotte scoring with a pair of free throws and the Bobcats wrapped it up. The final: Charlotte 94, Sacramento 87.

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GM & HEAD COACH BERNIE BICKERSTAFF SAYS...
(on the game) We did a much better job of converting turnovers. We got 25 points off of their turnovers. We kind of self-destructed the second half. We had I think five turnovers in the first half and we ended up with 18. But we did a much better job of converting turnovers. The one thing I think we did down the stretch was that we stopped playing. We didn’t play to win, we played to keep from losing. You have to go after them and make real good decisions and we didn’t do a real good job in that respect. .

(on knowing how Sacramento feels, playing without several injured players) I empathize, but that’s the extent of it. And especially when you consider how long they’ve been out here on the road.

(on the Bobcats not playing their best) We got a victory and we needed one. But you can’t be satisfied with that, unless you say on a bad night you got it done. But you know how coaches are, we want the closest thing to perfection…I’m not real happy with our rebounding, when it was on the line. You’ve got to go get the basketball. You’ve got to get possessions…We looked like we were in quicksand. You can understand with Sacramento, with them on the road.

(on what he liked from his team) I credit our guys. I thought we did a pretty good job of making them earn shots. They didn’t really get anything easy, even coming off the screens.

(on the mistakes being because of the team’s youth) It could happen to anybody. It’s kind of puzzling when you go from five to 14 or 15 (up) in the second half. You get tired. The wrong people are doing the wrong things. The wrong people have got the basketball in those situations. And then there were some turnovers that didn’t count – they were shots.

(on how hard the Bobcats play) It’s been terrific. It really has. I’m probably hard to satisfy but it’s been great. We talked in camp about mistakes of omission and commission, and at no time are they (making) mistakes of commission. They figure it out. But I don’t think as a coaching staff we can settle for it and saying it’s OK. That’s how we improve, if we can improve on some of these things. If we have a sense of urgency that we need a possession, go get the ball. We needed to make them play defense with more than just one pass, where we don’t just settle for the long jump shots. So those are the lessons we’ve got to learn…This whole thing is about winning. Losing is a problem. But guys have made it where it’s bearable because of who they are and how they play and how they compete. Normally when you’re in this situation you want the season to hurry up and end. I don’t have any problem with the season continuing because it’s going to be a barometer for us to evaluate some of our players, the guys give it everything that they have. So I really don’t have any problem with this season. Emotionally you’re into the game and then when you go home you think about it and you get over it.

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INSIDE THE LOCKER ROOM

GERALD WALLACE
(on playing against his former team) I was excited but I think a lot of the excitement was gone because a lot of the guys I played with didn’t play, like Brad Miller, Darius Songaila, Peja Stojakovic and Bobby Jackson. Obviously the team isn’t the same as it was when I was there. It was good to see all the guys again, but the feeling wasn’t there that I thought would be there playing against them.

(on the game) We came out, we sustained a lead and we executed in the fourth quarter against a very good team. Any time you’re capable of doing that it’s a great feeling.

PRIMOZ BREZEC
(on the game) They were a little bit shorthanded tonight without Brad Miller, Peja Stojakovic and Darius Songaila, but you can’t forget about Brian Skinner, Kenny Thomas and Corliss Williamson. They’re pretty good players. We did a good job tonight as a team, collectively. They’re a good three-point shooting team but today they played more inside. You’ve got to watch out for those shooters, so we couldn’t help and double team. We started pounding the ball inside, especially to Melvin (Ely). I think he’s one of the best in the league among post players. You have to have a balance between the inside and outside game. That’s the key.

BREVIN KNIGHT
(on the game) It was a great game for us. It was a great team effort. We defended very well against a high-scoring team. We did well against their guards, knowing they had to take a majority of the shots with their big guys being gone. It was a good win for our team.

(on playing at New Orleans Wednesday night) They’re playing well. They’re definitely getting after it. They haven’t quit. They have the same mentality that we have in that they’re just going to play hard. Guys are trying to prove they belong in the league, the same thing we’re doing here. We’re going to go down there with the same hard hat we had on tonight. We’re going to defend them tough, take good shots and try to get another win.