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Charlotte, NC (SportsNetwork.com) - Kemba Walker scored nine of Charlottes last 10 points to lead the Hornets to a 98-94 comeback win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday. Walker totaled 31 points, giving him his third 30-point game in a row for the Hornets, who have won all three. Gerald Henderson added 16 points, and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist chipped in 13 points and 12 rebounds. Anthony Davis had 32 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks for the Pelicans, who have lost three of their last four. New Orleans led by as much as 13 in the second half but could not hang on. The Pelicans also got 16 points, nine assists and six rebounds from Jrue Holiday, and Eric Gordon contributed 14 points. Brian Roberts triple on the opening possession of the fourth quarter tied the game for the first time since late in the first, but Davis dunk on the other end put the Pelicans back in front. For the next 4 1/2 minutes, neither team led by more than two until a 6-0 Hornets run capped by Jason Maxiells jumper put Charlotte ahead 84-79 with 6:25 left. The Hornets ran their lead up to as many as eight points, but after Davis scored the next five, Gordons 3 with 1:59 to go tied the game. Coming out of a timeout with 23 seconds remaining, Walker hit a fadeaway jumper over Davis to put Charlotte up 94-92. Davis layup tied the game on the other end, but that left too much time for Walker. With seconds remaining, the Hornets went up again on an acrobatic shot from Walker. He drove to the basket, pulled up for a jumper and hit the shot despite contact from Holiday. His free throw completed the three-point play to give Charlotte a 97-94 lead with 1.4 seconds left. The Hornets stole the inbounds pass to seal the win. I was just trying to make a play, said Walker. Time was running down, and I was just trying to get as far as I can to the basket. The first quarter was controlled by the Pelicans. New Orleans scored the first six points of the game and led 27-20 after one thanks to a three-point play by Davis with 20 seconds to go in the quarter. The Hornets tightened up their defense in the second period and limited New Orleans to 35 percent shooting. After Davis turnaround jumper with 2:24 to go in the half put the Pelicans up 10, Walker scored the final five points of the quarter for the Hornets as New Orleans led 48-41 at halftime. After Gordons 3-pointer with 6:35 to go in the third gave the Pelicans a 13- point lead, Charlotte started a 10-0 run with eight points from Henderson to pull within three. We just fell apart, said Pelicans coach Monty Williams. We didnt share the ball, the thing weve been talking about. Especially down the stretch, the ball just stuck. Walker closed the third with four straight points to cut Charlottes deficit to 70-67 after three. Game Notes Roberts scored 10 off the bench ... Tyreke Evans scored 10 points and had seven boards for New Orleans ... The Pelicans shot 6-of-18 from beyond the arc, and the Hornets made 4-of-14 ... Each team had 43 rebounds, 40 points in the paint and 11 second-chance points. .Then came December.Three straight losses, including a crushing 27-24 defeat to Washington (4-11) on Saturday, has the Eagles (9-6) on the brink of playoff elimination. . - Free agent defensive end Will Smith has signed with the New England Patriots. . The Henry Burris-led squad finished second in the East Division before advancing to the Grey Cup where they ultimately fell to the home field advantage wielding Saskatchewan Roughriders. . According to a report from ESPN, the Green Bay Packers have re-signed the cornerback to a four-year, $39 million deal with a $12. . -- Derek Jeter spoke for 25 minutes, 44 seconds and answered 26 questions about his decision to retire at the end of this season.BOSTON - The Boston Bruins dont expect to make a major signing in free agency. A player drafted from a mediocre crop this week likely wont make an immediate impact. So general manager Peter Chiarelli plans some small changes to improve the team that exited the playoffs earlier than expected. "We had a very good team and, with a little bit of tweaking, I feel well be right back where we were in the past," he said Monday. The Bruins won the Stanley Cup in 2010-11, reached the Cup finals in 2012-13, led the NHL in regular-season points in 2013-14 then eliminated the Detroit Red Wings in a five-game series. But they lost the next round to the Montreal Canadiens in seven games after going up 3-2. Chiarellis big task now is to re-sign Jarome Iginla after he tied for the team lead with 30 goals in his first season with Boston. "Im not going to comment specifically on negotiations," Chiarelli said in a conference call. "Wed like to sign Jarome and thats what I can say. I mean, he has been a valuable player for us. I think there is a good fit." Iginla is one of five Bruins who can become unrestricted free agents when the signing period begins July 1. The others are backup goalie Chad Johnson, defencemen Andrej Meszaros and Corey Potter, both late-season acquisitions, and forward Shawn Thornton, who has been told by Chiarelli he wont be re-signed. "There may be one or two more" among those free agents who he wont re-sign, Chiarelli said. Forward Reilly Smith and defenceman Torey Krug can become restricted free agents. Top free agents from other teams include forwards Marian Gaborik, Thomas Vanek and Paul Stastny. "There are good players available," Chiarelli said. "Were not going to go full force into the free agency. Were probably going to take a step back and look at what may be lesser deals, meaning not high-profile deals, might be available, parrtially due to (salary) cap reasons, partially due to chemistry reasons.dddddddddddd" A few hours later, Chiarelli announced that the Bruins had signed goalie Niklas Svedberg to a one-year contract. He played the only NHL game of his career in a 3-2 overtime win over the Nashville Predators on Jan. 2. With the Bruins AHL team in Providence last season, he was 25-15-4 with a 2.63 goals-against average. He had 37 wins for Providence the previous season. The Bruins have the 25th pick in the two-day draft starting Friday in Philadelphia. With four solid lines, a capable defence and young players bidding for playing time, any players drafted arent likely to help the Bruins next season. The draft "is generally considered, and I would agree, a thinner draft," Chiarelli said. "So there is not as much value, relatively speaking, placed in these picks. So teams will probably be more apt to move those picks around" through trades. Thornton spent seven seasons with the Bruins, providing toughness and leadership. He might not be the only player to leave who is part of the teams successful veteran core. "The decision on Shawn was a very hard one. Hes been here and part of this group for a long time and that would apply to all these guys who have been here and who have given us good service and that have been part of winning teams and Cup-winning teams," Chiarelli said. "So there will be hard choices, but it may be that we dont make hard choices and we keep as many people as we can and we go into the year and maybe we do make those hard choices as the year progresses." For now, Chiarelli is focusing on the draft. "I read about a bunch of (solid) centermen and were not in the market for any centerman," he said. Defencemen also "are becoming a major topic of conversation." He might even trade his first-round pick. "Everything is always available," Chiarelli said. ' ' '
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