Another home game. Another loss. And there's no end in sight.

The Hornets, one of only two teams in the NBA with a losing record on their own court and a winning record on the road, added to their misery Tuesday night. They surrendered a slim lead and eventually the game with a poor third-quarter performance in a 100-95 loss to the New York Knicks at the Charlotte Coliseum.

"We can't seem to duplicate the intensity at home that we have on the road," guard David Wesley said. "We're playing just well enough to lose most nights.

"We're concerned. We have to be concerned because this is where you create your difference (in the standings). This is where you make up for games you lose on the road. We're pretty good on the road and terrible at home. We've got it backwards.

"We're going to mess around and lose the few fans we've got. Nobody wants to watch you lose all the time."

The Hornets opened the season with back-to-back Coliseum wins but have dropped seven of eight since. The good news: They hit the road today for their next three games - at Philadelphia, Minnesota and Atlanta.

They might play well on the trip - they split six games on a recent two-week journey and are 8-6 overall away from Charlotte. At home they're 3-7, a record better only than Miami's 3-9.

Tuesday their downfall came in a woeful third quarter. The Hornets went into it with a 48-47 lead, not great but certainly better than what was to come.

The Knicks shot 50 percent in the period, getting more shots (20-16) and making more (10-4) than Charlotte. They slammed the bigger Hornets on the boards 16-6. And they did a lot of their damage inside, outscoring the Hornets 12-2 in the paint while building an 11-point cushion.

New York was up 10 going into the fourth. The Hornets made up ground, eventually closing to within 96-94 on Baron Davis' three-pointer with 55.6 seconds remaining. They managed only a free throw on their final three possessions and, forced to foul in an attempt to get the ball back, gave up four consecutive free throws to the Knicks as the issue was resolved.

Wesley scored 19 (with 10 assists), Davis and Elden Campbell 18 apiece and Stacey Augmon a season-high 16 for the Hornets.

Latrell Sprewell (30 points) and Allan Houston (21) did most of the damage for New York. Sprewell had a 21-point second half. Marcus Camby's 10 rebounds helped the Knicks to a 38-35 advantage.

"Our energy and concentration level was high," said New York coach Don Chaney.

The Hornets were unable to match either on a sustained basis and that was what most bothered coach Paul Silas.

"We play as hard as we can play (at home), we're just not getting the results right now," Silas said. "We didn't come out with the necessary energy, I thought, and gave them life. When you do that to a team that's been there before, they'll beat you. And they did."

Note

Sherri Hayward of Huntersville became the 20-millionth person to attend an event at the Coliseum. She was awarded numerous prizes including a Coliseum parking pass for 10 years, two tickets to 20 Coliseum events, an autographed Hornets basketball, a party for 20 friends at a Hornets game and Hornets season tickets.