Fans of the Charlotte Bobcats haven’t had much to cheer about during this National Basketball Association season, with the club on course for the league’s worst record. The Bobcats, owned by basketball great Michael Jordan, won for only the fifth time Tuesday night, topping the visiting Orlando Magic, 100-84.
The Bobcats took the court in Charlotte having lost 21 of their previous 22 games. But they showed fighting spirit after their head
Bismack Biyombo
coach Paul Silas was ejected in the second quarter with his team trailing by 18. The Bobcats rallied to beat the Magic, who feature Dwight Howard, the player many regard as the NBA’s best center.
Jordan and Silas had to be encouraged by the way Charlotte’s young forward-center, Bismack Biyombo, played against the more experienced Howard during the contest. In the best game of his rookie season in the NBA, the Congolese teenager Biyombo tallied 10 points, seven blocked shots and a career-high 15 rebounds.
Howard had 15 points, 17 rebounds and two blocked shots, as he and Biyombo engaged in an entertaining battle of big men. Speaking in the locker room after the game, the 19-year-old from Lubumbashi in the Democratic Republic of Congo said he enjoyed testing his skills again against Howard. Biyombo also played well against the Orlando star earlier this season.
Bismack Biyombo says he continues to learn every day in his first season in the NBA. He’s currently averaging four points and five rebounds a game, but look for those totals to rise as Coach Silas gives the Congolese rookie more minutes on the court during this losing season.