Sonics thrilled to have Allen back on the court

It is the second meeting of the season between the Sonics and Hornets. On December 8th, Chris Wilcox had 19 points and eight rebounds to lead Seattle to a 94-74 win over the Hornets at KeyArena. The SuperSonics have won two of the last three contests in the series. The Hornets have lost two in a row and five of their last six at Seattle.

The Hornets will host the Sonics on February 23, 2007 and April 4, 2007 in the final two contests of the season between the squads.

Seattle is 1-1 on the homestand. On Saturday, All-Star guard Ray Allen returned from a nine-game absence and scored 28 points, grabbed six rebounds and dished out five assists to lead the SuperSonics past the Toronto Raptors, 110-97, at KeyArena.

Allen missed time with a bone bruise in his right ankle. The Sonics were just 3-6 without him in the lineup. The Connecticut product leads Seattle in scoring (25.4 ppg).

Luke Ridnour posted 18 points and six assists in the win over Toronto for Seattle, while Nick Collison had 15 points and eight boards for the SuperSonics, who snapped a six-game losing streak.

The SuperSonics are 7-7 at KeyArena this season. They will play their next two games against Northwest Division rivals. Seattle is scheduled to visit Denver on Thursday and Minnesota on Friday. The Sonics will be playing the Nuggets and Timberwolves for the first time this season.

Seattle suffered a big loss when forward Rashard Lewis suffered a sprained tendon in right hand on December 20th during a 103-95 loss to the Mavericks. Lewis is expected to miss up to eight weeks with the injury. Lewis is averaging 21.9 points and 6.8 rebounds per game in 27 contests this season.