Philadelphia, PA (My Sportsbook) - New Orleans Hornets forward Jamal Mashburn is in the starting lineup for Wednesday's Eastern Conference quarterfinal contest against the Philadelphia 76ers at the First Union Center. The Hornets are on the brink of elimination, trailing the best-of-seven series, 3-1. Mashburn, who suffered a bone chip fracture and a dislocation in his right middle finger in Game 2, has missed the last two games. The injury is to Mashburn's shooting hand. The Hornets lost, 96-87, in Game 4 of the series without Mashburn, who was originally thought to be lost for the rest of the series. In the first two games of the series, Mashburn averaged 21.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists. In the regular season, the smooth-shooting Mashburn played in all 82 games and poured in 21.6 points per contest to go along with 6.1 rebounds and 5.6 assists. |
