(PROGRAMMING NOTE: No live blog on the Houston game Saturday. More pesky prior commitments, I’m afraid.)

FOURTH QUARTER:

** Azubuike wasted one possession, then comes down and takes advantage in transition to creat an opportunity for the 3-point play.

** That would have been so very, very Warriors if Marks had hit the desperation 45-footer.

** Speaking of so very, very Warriors: Wright with the putback dunk.

** These are eminently makeable shots that the Warriors are missing, which makes it all the more galling.

** This is a sloppy game on both ends — and just like mud or rain or wind helps the less-talented team in the NFL, so sloppiness helps the less-talented team in the NBA.

** Give Don Nelson credit — he has, for the most part, managed to successfully hide the defensive liabilities caused by the mismatches on his end.

** This may be the most amusing stat of the year: Corey Maggette, 1-for-10 floor, but a team-high plus-13.

** Dear David West: The one thing you cannot do as a defender is bail out Maggette after you force him into a jumper.

** Interesting that even with Crawford, Ellis and Jackson on the floor, it’s been all Maggette down the stretch.

** Unforced travel on Maggette. Awful.

** After watching Paul feel pressure on his back, then pull up to allow Turiaf to run him over for a cheap foul in the backcourt, I’m more and more thinking of Paul as a latter-day Isiah Thomas — devastatingly cutthroat but smiling all the while.

** Peja gets 3 back after committing that horrible gaffe on Maggette at the other end.

** With Crawford in uniform, the Warriors have two guards with solid mid-range games, instead of just Ellis. As Peja just found out.

** I love the way that Hubie and Schulman have already conceded the game to the Warriors. Guess this team’s history slipped through the research net.

** Going seven deep and beating a team with one of the league’s two best players? That’s an impressive feat.

THIRD QUARTER:

** The return of the Turiaf-Biedrins tandem? Oh my…

** Nice body control by Ellis to force the foul from Paul on the break there, but Hubie has it right: Monta would have jumped clean over CP3 in that situation last season.

** I’m glad to see Paul isn’t rewarded for sneaking in behind Ellis in the backcourt. That’s just so … cheap, I guess is the best word for it.

** The good news: Two offensive boards this quarter with the bigs out there. The bad: No ball movement whatsoever, just solo treys or pullups from Jackson, Crawford and Ellis. Why not feed Biedrins and let him deal to some cutters?

** If Turiaf’s going to let passes slip through his hands like that, he’s not long for the floor.

** Nice job by Paul of initiating contact with Turiaf to draw the cheap foul. Fortunately for the Warriors, he didn’t convert the bucket as well, so it only cost them two points.

** It shouldn’t surprise, because you know in advance what’s going to happen, but the difference between the first-half Chris Paul, who always seems to perform at approximately 80 percent of his full capacity, and the second-half, hell-bent-for-leather version, is consistently striking.

** Great defense forces Butler into a horrible shot, but Sean Marks beats Azubuike to the ball and it leads to more second-chance points.

** Is ESPN having such hard economic times that they have to have Dan Schulman serve as play-by-play and sideline guy?

HALFTIME:

** 1and2: Are you a grad of Southern Mississippi or something?

SECOND QUARTER:

** C.J. Watson, you’re making me regret pimping you for the Rookie Challenge with that aborted drive.

** 1and2: David West is superior to Clarence, and by a fairly wide margin. West has legitimate size and far more range on his J.

** Maggette is just being neutralized by James Posey right now. It’s not even funny.

** Do you think Devin Brown is sad any longer that Don Nelson cut him loose without so much as a look-see back before the 2006-07 season?

** Now the Warriors are dropping rebounds that not only one but two guys have their hands on. /shakes head.

** That breakaway looked more like the Monta of old, as compared to the one in the first quarter when he seemed to be easing up on his way to the hoop.

** Monta showed some good strength to absorb the contact with Peja and still convert the reverse layup.

** With Paul really playing some disjointed ball and Tyson Chandler benched, the Warriors won’t have a better chance than right now to beat the Hornets this season.

FIRST QUARTER

** Sorry for the radio silence this week, but I had some better-paying gigs to attend to. Just consider it my 48minutes.net version of this.

** So Monta Ellis will start, which should give us another look at how Ellis and Jamal Crawford can fit together.

** Crawford brings the first possession upcourt, dishes off, then knocks down the 3 off Ellis’ drive and kick. That’s a good start.

** Based on early returns, point No. 1 in the Warriors’ game plan is to abuse Peja Stojakovic with the dribble whenever possible with a faster guard.

** Of course, Peja can shoot over anybody who tries to guard him, unless the Warriors decide to move Jackson off his initial assignment of Chris Paul and task him to Stojakovic.

** Sean Marks pinballs Monta out of the way to make things easy for a cutting Rasual Butler.

** An alley-oop pass off the rim, and now a blown dunk: It’s a tough start for Stephen Jackson.

** With three turnovers already, Chris Paul has looked unusually mortal this evening.

** I liked the idea from Corey Maggette there while going after that offensive rebound, even if it was a pretty clear foul for shoving Peja Stojakovic in the back.

** Is it too late to nominate Julian Wright in the Best Supporting Actor category? Just a horrible charging call on Ellis off Wright’s flop.

– Geoff