Basketball: Hornets shoot down high-flying Hawks 96-88
Posted: 22 November 2009 1451 hrs

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NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana: New Orleans Rookie Darren Collison notched his first NBA double-double with 22 points and 11 assists Saturday as the Hornets ended Atlanta's seven-game winning streak.

Fellow rookie Marcus Thornton scored 21 for the Hornets, who made 12 of 17 three-point attempts in a 96-88 victory.

"When you're a rookie you've got to come in and make a name for yourself," Thornton said. "Me and Darren from day one when we came in, we knew we could play this game, and we just stuck together ... and we prevailed today."

Jamal Crawford scored 20 for Atlanta, who became the second straight division leader to lose in New Orleans after the Hornets beat Phoenix on Thursday.

The Hawks had the additional blow of seeing starting guard Mike Bibby sprain his left ankle in the first quarter and depart the game.

Bibby appeared to roll the ankle while coming down from a jump shot about five minutes into the game.

"He's a big part of what we do and we don't know how long he'll be out," Atlanta coach Mike Woodson said of Bibby. "We have enough guys and they will have to step up and pick up the slack."

The Hornets led all of the second half as they turned back every Hawks challenge.

Collison and Thornton, drafted in the first and second rounds, respectively, showed poise when it counted.

Thornton drove to the basket and took open jump shots with confidence. He scored 10 points in the fourth quarter, including a three-point play on a driving layup.

"Marcus Thornton was definitely the story of the game," said Atlanta's Joe Johnson. "We really didn't have an answer for him."

- AFP/yb