Los Angeles - From Germany to Spain, the New Orleans Hornets trashed the Washington Wizards in Europe again. Melvin Ely had 19 points with eight rebounds, and the undefeated Hornets routed the Wizards for the second straight game, 102-80, in Barcelona on Friday night in preseason play.
The Hornets swept the two-game European exhibition series, after whipping the Wizards, 96-80, Tuesday night in Berlin.
"It's always great to win preseason games but the most important thing is the team's mentality," Hornets coach Byron Scott said. "The team's mentality is strong, I think they are getting out to a better start than last year."
Serbian sharpshooter Peja Stojakovic scored 13 points, while Olympic gold medalist Chris Paul finished with 10 and eight assists for the Hornets (5-0) who rested starters Tyson Chandler and David West.
Caron Butler and rookie centre JaVake McGee scored 15 points apiece for the Wizards (1-4) who shot just 37 per cent (31-of-84) from the field without starters Gilbert Arenas (knee surgery) and Brendan Haywood (wrist surgery).
Wizards all-star forward Antawn Jamison returned to the line-up with nine points and seven rebounds after straining his knee in the pre-season opener.
"The preseason doesn't count, but they are important to help you see where you are," Jamison said. "We have a lot of wrinkles we need to get situated, defensively we have to get better."
Similar to Tuesday night's blowout in Berlin, New Orleans scored early and often and never looked back in front of the 15,872 fans, who attended the contest at the site of the 1992 Olympics.
The Hornets sprinted to a 32-17 lead after one, and stretched it to 50-32 at the break before cruising to the easy victory.
Elsewhere:
Golden State Warriors 109, Milwaukee Bucks 108
Rob Kurz knocked down the game-tying three-pointer with 25 seconds left and drilled the game-winning triple at the buzzer to give the Warriors a dramatic preseason victory over the Bucks in Beijing.
Matt Frieje's jumper with 1.4 seconds remaining had given the Bucks a 108-106 lead.
The Warriors called a timeout to advance the ball to mid-court. Kurz, then took a pass from CJ Watson, and fired in his third three- pointer from the top of the arc as time expired.
Stephen Jackson led the Warriors (3-2) with 24 points, while Kurz finished with 11.
Charlie Villaneuva led the Bucks (1-5) with 26 points and Michael Redd added 23.
Indiana Pacers 112, Memphis Grizzlies 86
Rookie Brandon Rush scored 17 points and Stephen Graham added 16, helping the Pacers tame the visiting Grizzlies in preseason play.
Rookie Roy Hibbert finished with 12 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks for the Pacers (3-2) who lost to the Grizzlies, 103-05 on Monday night.
Rudy Gay had 19 points, rookie OJ Mayo scored 17 for the Grizzlies (2-4) who shot 34 per cent from the field (31-of-91).
New York Knicks 104, Boston Celtics 97
Nate Robinson scored 19 points off the bench, Zach Randolph added 15 and the Knicks held off the Celtics in preseason play.
Eddie House hit seven three-pointers and scored 16 of his 27 points in the final quarter, but it wasn't enough for the Celtics (4- 2) who were playing at home for the first time since beating the LA Lakers in June for the NBA championship.
Denver Nuggets 94, Phoenix Suns 91
JR Smith scored 19 points, Carmelo Anthony added all 14 of his in the opening half, and the Nuggets shaded the Suns to move to a perfect 4-0 in preseason play.
Raja Bell netted 15 points while Matt Barnes and Grant Hill had 13 apiece for the Suns (2-3) who played without injured all-stars Steve Nash (ankle sprain) and Amare Stoudemire (eye).
Houston Rockets 95, Sacramento Kings 90
Aaron Brooks scored 10 of his 23 points in the final quarter, and China's superstar centre Yao Ming had 15 before leaving with right ankle sprain in the third quarter, as the Rockets held off the visiting Kings in a preseason contest.
Ron Artest collected 13 points in 18 first-half minutes for the Rockets (4-2) in his first appearance against his former club since being traded in August.
Kevin Martin scored 19 points for the Kings (1-4) who fell short after trailing 52-37 at half-time.
Chicago Bulls 108, Utah Jazz 105
Ben Gordon scored 13 of his 23 points in the final quarter, including the go-ahead three-point play with 1:27 remaining, and the Bulls gave new coach Vinny Del Negro his first preseason victory when Kyle Korver missed a potential game-tying three-pointer at the buzzer.
Carlos Boozer paced the Jazz (2-3) with 21 points while Turkey's Mehmet Okur had 17.
