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Tersk · 03-16-2005, 08:44 PM

I didn't come up with the crappy thread title

Quote:

Seeing is believing.

That's one of the few explanations the Charlotte Bobcats have for this odd turn: They have more victories against Western Conference teams (seven) than against Eastern Conference teams (five) and have a dramatically better winning percentage against the West (.292) than the East (.135).

The East as a whole was 166-213 (.438) against the West entering Tuesday. Only three other East teams have better records against the West than against the East, and the Bobcats are the only team with more wins against the West than the East.

The Bobcats figure Western teams might look past them on the schedule, while Eastern teams know better than to assume a victory.

"In the West, all they see is our record," Bobcats point guard Brevin Knight said. "Coaches can say, `They play hard,' but until players see it, they don't always believe it.

"In the East, where teams are scouting us all the time and teams play us more frequently (generally four times a season, versus two in the West), they know we play hard."

The Bobcats head West for three games this week, against Denver tonight, then San Antonio on Friday and Dallas on Saturday. The Bobcats' only road victories this season came out West, in Houston and Utah.

They hope they can sneak up on the Nuggets, Spurs and Mavericks, somewhat the way they sneaked up on the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night. The Bobcats didn't win, but they played the Lakers down to the last second, when Kobe Bryant hit a 20-footer for a one-point victory.

"After the way we played in Philadelphia (a 32-point loss Friday), the Lakers must have been thinking, `An expansion team, on the second game of a back-to-back? This should be easy,' " Bobcats forward Jason Kapono surmised.

Kapono said it's much easier for the Bobcats to build leads in the first half than in the second half because of that surprise factor.

"I'd think that teams get ripped a lot at halftime (by their coaches) when they're behind us," he said. "Nobody wants to lose to an expansion team."

That "surprise factor" theory plays out in when the Bobcats win. Seven of their 12 victories this season came in first-time meetings with various teams.

"It's about catching them off-guard," Kapono said. "The second or third time we play a team, they know they'll get a game."

On the road to Wellville

Some theories as to why the Bobcats have a better record against the West (7-17) than against the East (5-32): • The surprise factor: Teams out West only see the bad record, not the team that generally plays tough into the fourth quarter and has lost a half-dozen teams in the last minute.

• The subtle difference in style: Western teams by-and-large play more up-tempo. Coach Bernie Bickerstaff and point guard Brevin Knight think that helps the Bobcats, a team that's not particularly rugged and needs some easy transition baskets to develop a rhythm.

• Dumb luck: Both victories over Houston came in the first two months, before the Rockets figured out how to get the most from Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming. And the Bobcats beat the Kings on a night when Peja Stojakovic, Chris Webber and Brad Miller couldn't play.

That's pretty interesting article, we are one of the only (maybe the only) team who was more wins against the West than against the East

**Dre™** · 03-16-2005, 09:03 PM

The Bobcats are surprisingly gritty, already playing in the identity of their best player, a rookie. That is an interesting read.

Drewbs · 03-17-2005, 07:19 AM

We did sweep Houston in our season series.

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