NEW ORLEANS — Chris Paul hit a driving scoop as he was fouled with 7.6 seconds left, and the New Orleans Hornets narrowly averted a stunning loss at home by beating the New Jersey Nets 103-99 on Friday night.
The Hornets had blown a 15-point lead and trailed 99-98 before Paul capped an 11-point, 18-assist performance by putting New Orleans back up for good. David West added 32 points and 10 rebounds for New Orleans, which extended its winning streak to five games and won for the 12th time in its last 13 home games.
Courtney Lee hit five 3-pointers and finished with 28 points for New Jersey, which dropped its fourth straight game. Keyon Dooling hit four 3s and scored 21.
Coming off a 2-0 road trip that put them above .500 for the first time all season, the Hornets (18-16) shot better than 50 percent through the first three quarters against the Nets (3-33) and held a double-digit lead for much of the game en route to their 11th win in 16 games.
New Orleans appeared fully in command when Paul found Emeka Okafor for a transition dunk to make it 78-63 late in the third quarter, but Lee came back with his third 3-pointer of the period, sparking an 11-3 run that pulled New Jersey to 81-74 early in the fourth quarter. A few minutes later, Dooling's fourth 3 of the game pulled the Nets within 84-80.
West scored as he was fouled on the next possession, then scored again on a fast-break layup set up by Paul to make it 89-80, but New Jersey refused to quit and nearly pulled out a shocker.
Lee's fifth 3 sparked an 8-0 run that made it 96-94. After James Posey hit two free throws, he was called for a foul during an inbound pass on the other end with 19 seconds left. New Jersey was given one foul shot, which Lee made, plus possession. Dooling then hit a driving layup to make it 98-97.
When the Hornets tried to inbound the ball to Paul, Lee appeared to give Paul a push, but there was no whistle as Paul fell to the ground. Lee picked up the loose ball and missed a fast-break layup as he was fouled by Paul, but made both free throws to put the Nets up 99-98 with 11.5 seconds to go.
Paul then took the inbound pass, dribbled laterally across the top of the key and then cut to the hoop, scoring as he was fouled by Jarvis Hayes. The Nets still had a chance to tie the game with a 3, but Devin Harris was called for a charge on Devin Brown, and West later added two free throws to put it away and drop the Nets 30 games below .500.
Okafor had 13 points and 13 rebounds for New Orleans. Darius Songaila added 10 points in a reserve role.
Brook Lopez scored 14 points and Yi Jianlian grabbed 10 rebounds for New Jersey.
Notes
About two hours before the game, a smoldering garbage bin fire spewed smoke into the New Orleans Arena. The blaze was quickly extinguished and did not affect pregame warmups or delay the game. … The Hornets are 14-3 at home this season. … Yi came in averaging 20.3 points in his previous seven games, but was held to eight points in 32 minutes. … New Jersey is 1-18 on the road. … The Hornets invited the entire New Orleans Saints team to the game to honor them for finishing atop the NFC in the regular season. An estimated 30 Saints players showed up. Drew Brees and Pierre Thomas drew some of the loudest cheers of the night when they tossed signed footballs into the stands. … Musical artist Ludacris and Jacksonville Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio, who participated in Paul's celebrity bowling event a night earlier, both sat courtside.