CHARLOTTE

The Charlotte Hornets keep losing at home.

Keep losing at home. Keep losing at home. Keep losing at home.

"It's sounding like a broken record right now," Coach Paul Silas said last night. "We're playing as hard as we can play but we're just not getting the results we need."

That was the story after the New York Knicks beat the Hornets 100-95 at the Charlotte Coliseum, where a crowd significantly smaller than the announced attendance of 9,074 looked on.

Last night's loss was the Hornets' seventh in their past eight home games and dropped them to 3-7 at home - the second-worst home record in the NBA.

They had snapped a five-game home skid last week with an impressive win over Toronto to open a three-game homestand, but lost to Boston here on Saturday night and then were thoroughly outplayed in the second half last night.

"We're gonna go and mess around and lose the few fans we've got," guard David Wesley said. "Nobody wants to see us keep losing."

Wesley said he was as perplexed as anyone by the home record, especially since the Hornets have played winning basketball on the road. They're 11-13 overall, thanks to an 8-6 mark on the road.

"We're concerned," Wesley said. "Obviously we have to be concerned because this is where you create your distance. This is where you make up for games you don't win on the road. But right now we have it backward. We're winning on the road and we're awful at home, and that's not the way this thing is supposed to work out."

Latrell Sprewell and Allan Houston did the Hornets in, as the Knicks snapped a four-game losing streak of their own and raised their record to 12-13.

Sprewell led all scorers with 30 points, including nine of the Knicks' last 11 to hold off a late Charlotte rally. Houston scored 21, and Marcus Camby added 17 points and 10 rebounds.

Wesley led the Hornets with 19 points and 10 assists. Baron Davis and Elden Campbell scored 18 each, and Stacey Augmon came off the bench to score a season-high 16 points.

The Hornets led at halftime, but let this one slip away in the third quarter. They were outscored 27-16 to fall behind 74-64 going into the fourth period, shooting just 25 percent (4 of 16) in the third.

They put on a fierce rally in the closing minutes and got as close as two at 96-94, but Sprewell and Mark Jackson hit two free throws each in the final 12 seconds while the Hornets missed a couple of 3-point attempts.

"We're not losing to bad teams, but we're playing just well enough to lose most nights, and that's frustrating," Wesley said.

The Hornets will now head out on a three-game road trip, starting tonight at Philadelphia.

Also last night, forward Jamal Mashburn spoke to reporters for the first time since returning from Vancouver, where he has been undergoing rehabilitation for a strained abdominal muscle.

Mashburn said that he was seeing signs of improvement, but he still has no timetable for a possible return. He said he has two to four weeks remaining in his first phase of rehab.

In a best-case scenario, Mashburn will be out at least until after the All-Star break in mid-February.

Team officials also said last night that George Lynch may not get the cast removed from his injured left foot on Friday, as initially planned.

NEW YORK - Sprewell 8-18 12-12 30, Thomas 4-7 2-3 10, Camby 8-16 1-2 17, Jackson 1-3 2-2 5, Houston 9-18 2-2 21, Ward 3-7 0-0 7, Anderson 0-2 2-2 2, Harrington 4-8 0-0 8, Knight 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 37-80 21-23 100.

CHARLOTTE - Brown 1-3 2-2 4, Nailon 1-5 2-2 4, Campbell 6-12 6-8 18, Davis 7-16 2-3 18, Wesley 8-14 2-5 19, Augmon 6-8 4-4 16, Magloire 2-5 3-4 7, Traylor 1-2 2-2 4, Drew 0-0 0-0 0, Bullard 1-6 3-3 5. Totals 33-71 26-33 95.

New York29182726-100Charlotte27211631-95

3-Point Goals - New York 5-11 (Sprewell 2-4, Jackson 1-1, Houston 1-2, Ward 1-4), Charlotte 3-13 (Davis 2-7, Wesley 1-2, Bullard 0-4). Assists - New York 20 (Jackson 8), Charlotte 22 (Wesley 10). A - 9,074 (19,925).