The AP reports: Chris Paul and his Hornets teammates had a lousy Christmas, so they took it out on the Houston Rockets. Paul had 26 points and 10 assists, and New Orleans snapped a two-game skid with an 88-79 victory over Houston on Friday night. David West added 23 points and Rasual Butler 13 for the Hornets, who took an early lead and never trailed, mindful of their dreadful, 88-68 loss in Orlando on Christmas Day… Yao Ming had 19 points and 12 rebounds for Houston, which dropped its second straight game. Tracy McGrady was held to 11 points, missing nine of his 11 shots from the field… Tyson Chandler had 14 points and 12 rebounds, including a crucial tip-in with 2:32 left and a late offensive rebound on a tip-out to Paul that helped seal the victory.
