The Hornets are home after playing four good scoring Western Conference teams on the road. The Hornets allowed an average of 104 points per game in matchups against the Lakers, Suns, Trail Blazers and Warriors.

Now Charlotte gets Dallas, which leads the NBA in scoring at 109.5 points and is second in field goal percentage.

The Mavericks have padded some of their numbers against weak competition, but still have reached triple digits in eight of their 10 games. They are getting balanced scoring and likely to catch a break in that Charlotte may still be without one of its best defensive players, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. He's missed the past two games with a stress reaction in his foot.

The Hornets should be able to get a large share of points in the paint thanks to Al Jefferson, who is averaging better than 21 points per game and can take advantage of Dallas centers Tyson Chandler and slender Brandan Wright. Chandler is having a highly productive season so far, but has had problems staying out of foul trouble when guarding elite post men.

Lance Stephenson is playing better, too, for the Hornets. The Mavericks are below average defensively ranking 18th allowing 100 points per game.