Wesley Too Much for Rockets Again

Charlotte guard David Wesley isn’t known as an explosive scorer, but the Houston Rockets have brought out the best in him this year.

Wesley scored 26 points, including consecutive three-point baskets during a crucial stretch of the fourth quarter, as the Hornets beat the Rockets, 93-86, Thursday night at Charlotte, N.C.

Wesley, who scored a season-high 32 points at Houston on Dec. 29, made a three-point shot from the top of the key to tie the score, 70-70, with 9:47 left.

Ten seconds later, Wesley blocked Rodrick Rhodes’ layup attempt at the other end and with 9:17 left, he made another three-point shot from the left wing.

“I came down and sneaked up on him,” Wesley said of his 12th blocked shot of the season. “I caught him from behind. He actually took his time shooting the layup, and that gave me time to catch up because I was really beaten on the play.

“Then I think he was down there arguing with the ref, thinking it was a foul, and that gave me an opportunity on the back side. B.J. Armstrong found me for a wide-open shot.”

After Houston’s Clyde Drexler tied the score, 83-83, on a three-point play with 3:01 left, Charlotte took the lead for good with a 10-0 run that started with Glen Rice’s jumper from the top of the key.

Drexler thinks recent trade talks concerning the Rockets’ desire to acquire Toronto point guard Damon Stoudamire have hurt the team.

“The trade rumors have upset the chemistry of the team,” Drexler said.

Cleveland 112, Sacramento 96--Shawn Kemp had 29 points as the Cavaliers ended a three-game home losing streak with their highest point total of the season.

Cleveland rookie point guard Brevin Knight had another stellar game with 10 points, 16 assists and five steals. Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 14 points and 13 rebounds for the Cavaliers, and another rookie, Cedric Henderson, had 16.

Mitch Richmond had 31 points as basically a one-man team for the Kings, who lost their fourth straight.

Ilgauskas shut the door on the Kings with an alley-oop dunk on a great pass from Knight, making the score 106-88. Wesley Person put Cleveland over its season high with an 18-foot jumper in the final seconds.

NBA Notes

The Milwaukee Bucks and forward Tyrone Hill agreed on a five-year, $35-million contract extension, keeping him under contract through the 2002-2003 season. Hill, 29, is averaging 9.8 points and 10.2 rebounds. . . . The Toronto Raptors again failed to act on a trade involving guard Damon Stoudamire, but General Manager Glen Grunwald said he expects to make a move within a week. . . . Referee Joe Borgia, who called a foul on Washington Wizard Calbert Cheaney instead of Chris Webber and thereby prevented Webber from fouling out of a Jan. 16 victory over the Vancouver Grizzlies, has been fined and reprimanded. . . . Four-time all-star Tim Hardaway of the Miami Heat was among four players selected to compete in the Shootaround at All-Star Weekend. Hardaway will test his shooting skills against Charles Oakley of the Knicks, Sam Cassell of the New Jersey Nets and Steve Smith of the Atlanta Hawks on Feb. 7.