Nelson reaches 1,200 wins

Nelson is only the second coach in NBA history to crack the 1,200-win barrier, where he joins Lenny Wilkens, who sits atop the all-time coaching wins list with 1,332.

"It just means that I have been around for awhile," said Nelson. "It was just good to get it out of the way."

The Warriors had lost four straight with Nelson stuck at 1,199, but pulled away in the second half to give their coach number 1,200.

Mickael Pietrus led Golden State with 22 points. Andris Biedrins scored 17 and grabbed 13 rebounds, and Baron Davis scored 16, pulled down 10 boards, and finished one assist short of a triple-double with nine for the Warriors. Monta Ellis scored 16 as well, and Mike Dunleavy added 12 points off of the bench.

Desmond Mason led the Hornets with 24 points, but he only scored two in the second half. Jannero Pargo scored 15 points and raked in 12 rebounds on the night. Rasual Butler scored 13 and Chris Paul added 11 points for the Hornets, who have lost seven of eight.

Golden State opened the second half on a 13-5 lead to take control of the game and a Pietrus three put the Warriors up 58-50 with 7:36 left in the quarter. The Warriors led 73-62 going into the fourth quarter.

The Hornets trailed by double-digits for the entire fourth quarter, only managing 18 points in the final 12 minutes to lose by 21.

"We just can’t make shots," said Hornets coach Byron Scott. "Guys are getting wide open shots and missing."

A Mason alley-oop dunk put the Hornets up 17-11 late in the first quarter, and, after a Pietrus dunk for the Warriors, Pargo converted a three-point play with 49 seconds left that extended their lead to 21-13. Ellis quickly answered with a layup, though, and Davis drilled a three at the buzzer to send the Warriors into the second quarter only down three, 21-18.

Mason heated up in the second quarter, hitting for 17 points to give him 22 in the first half. Mason hit a short-range bank shot that put the Hornets up 42-33 with five minutes left in the half, but the Warriors closed the half on a 12-3 run to tie the game up. Ellis hit back-to-back dunks in the final minute, and the game was knotted at 45-45 at halftime.

Game Notes

The Hornets only made 4-of-18 (22.2 percent) from behind the three-point line...Golden State outrebounded the Hornets, 42-38...The Hornets had won three of the last four in this series coming in the game.