Hornets 84, Mavericks 81

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ David West scored 17 points and Brandon Bass hit the go-ahead jumper to lift the New Orleans Hornets to an 84-81 victory over Dallas in preseason play. <br/><br/>Linton Johnson the

Wednesday, October 11th 2006, 8:48 am

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ David West scored 17 points and Brandon Bass hit the go-ahead jumper to lift the New Orleans Hornets to an 84-81 victory over Dallas in preseason play.

Linton Johnson the Third added 12 points and Chris Paul had 10 points and six assists in 21 minutes for New Orleans, but last night's game was decided by reserves.

Bass -- a second-round draft pick last year -- put New Orleans up 82-81 with a jumper from the left elbow with just over two minutes to play. Cedric Simmons, one of New Orleans' two first-round draft picks this year, then hit a jumper in the key to stretch the lead to three.

Bass blocked Maurice Ager's layup in the final minute, and Jose Juan Barea missed a desperation shot from just beyond halfcourt that would have sent the game to overtime.

The defending Western Conference champions left most of their starting lineup at home.