Charlotte @ Dallas preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 10, 2018 ) Dallas 115, Charlotte 111

The Charlotte Hornets might be out of the playoff race, but that doesn't mean they've quit. The Hornets will try to put together a third consecutive historic performance when they visit the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday.

Center Dwight Howard became the eighth player in NBA history to record a 30-30 game when he posted 32 points and 30 rebounds in a 111-105 win at Brooklyn on Wednesday, and Charlotte went out on Thursday in the second night of a back-to-back and posted the largest margin of victory in franchise history with a 140-79 rout of the Memphis Grizzlies behind a record performance by Kemba Walker. "Two nights in a row," Hornets coach Steve Clifford told reporters. "It was fun to me to watch what Dwight did last night and then what Kemba did tonight. Just fun to watch and deserving for both guys. So, it's a good night for the Hornets and we'll go to Dallas and see if we can continue to play well." The Mavericks are losers of four in a row and dropped the opener of a two-game homestand 119-112 to the Utah Jazz on Thursday. "Shot-making was our deodorant tonight, because defensive we weren't getting much done," Dallas Rick Carlisle told reporters after the latest setback. "It's a dangerous game to play and we're just going to have to do better defensively."

TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, FS Southeast (Charlotte), FS Southwest (Dallas)

ABOUT THE HORNETS (32-41): Walker needed just 28 minutes to score 46 points on Thursday and made a franchise-record 10 3-pointers while going 13-of-18 from the field, 10-of-14 from beyond the arc and 10-of-10 from the free-throw line. "I think he's grown in every area, just because of how he is," Clifford told reporters of Walker. "It's not just his skills -- where he's made obviously great strides -- but he's a student of the NBA. ... He's always been extremely team-oriented, he's a great presence in the locker room, you know because of his work, because of his commitment to the game, to the team. And it's been I think just the way you want it to be, it's been every year it gets better and better. Obviously, we're just fortunate to have him here." Howard didn't get a chance to follow up his historic performance while serving a one-game suspension on Thursday for reaching 16 technical fouls.

ABOUT THE MAVERICKS (22-50): Dallas is trying to stay out of the Western Conference basement while getting a good look at some younger players as the season winds down, but the most promising of those youngsters, rookie point guard Dennis Smith Jr., missed the last two games with a sprained left ankle. Smith plans on returning to the lineup on Saturday, where he will be joined with newcomer Aaron Harrison. The Mavericks signed the former Kentucky standout guard to a 10-day contract on Thursday and he scored six points in 20 minutes off the bench in his team debut.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Mavericks PG J.J. Barea went 5-of-7 from 3-point range while starting in place of Smith on Thursday.

2. Hornets SG Nicolas Batum (Achilles) is expected to miss his fourth straight game.

3. The road team took four of the last five in the series, with Dallas grabbing a 115-111 victory at Charlotte on Jan. 10.

PREDICTION: Hornets 112, Mavericks 103