New Orleans Hornets shooting guard Xavier Henry (4) dunks the ball during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks in New Orleans, Friday, March 2, 2012. The Hornets won 97-92.

New Orleans Hornets shooting guard Xavier Henry (4) dunks the ball during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks in New Orleans, Friday, March 2, 2012. The Hornets won 97-92.

• Xavier Henry (New Orleans Hornets) had his best week of the year, heating up for a career-high 19 points against Dallas Mavericks on Friday before coming back with a more mild nine points against the Indiana Pacers on Saturday. Henry’s career-high came off 8-for-12 shooting and was backed up by four rebounds, two assists and two steals in 24 minutes. Just as impressive were Henry’s zero fouls and one turnover as the Hornets beat the defending champion Mavericks, 97-92 (full stats here).

On Saturday, Henry played another 26 minutes, but he made just 4 of 11 shots against the Pacers. To Henry’s credit, he shook off his early shooting woes and scored all nine of his points in seven fourth-quarter minutes. He added six rebounds, two assists, a steal and zero turnovers for the game, but the Hornets lost, 102-84 (full stats here).

• Cole Aldrich (Oklahoma City Thunder) tied a career-high six points and pulled down a career-high seven rebounds on Saturday as the Thunder lost to the Atlanta Hawks, 97-90. Aldrich saw some action early in the game after OKC starting center Kendrick Perkins picked up his third personal foul midway through the second quarter. Perkins eventually fouled out, and Thunder coach Scott Brooks rolled with Aldrich for 14 minutes. During that time, Aldrich made just 1 of 5 looks from the field but was a perfect 4-for-4 from the foul line. He also blocked three shots and grabbed five offensive rebounds (full stats here).

After the game, the Oklahoman’s Darnell Mayberry noted:

He missed a few bunnies that he should have made, but that could come with time. “I rushed them a little bit,” Aldrich said.

Mayberry also asked Thunder coach Scott Brooks about playing Aldrich ahead of backup center Nazr Mohammed (two points, three rebounds, seven minutes):

“I played Nazr and then Perk got in foul trouble,” Brooks said. “And then I went with Cole in the second half. I don’t know what I’m going to do next game. They both are professionals. They both prepare to play and we’ll see.”

Aldrich did not play (coach’s decision) on Thursday against the Orlando Magic. The Thunder beat the Magic, 105-102 (game stats here).

• Kirk Hinrich (Atlanta Hawks) started in place of injured shooting guard Joe Johnson on Saturday as the Hawks beat the Oklahoma City Thunder, 97-90. Hinrich scored eight of his 10 points in the first quarter and finished with two rebounds, one assist and four fouls in 26 minutes (full stats here).

Hinrich also started for Johnson on Friday against the Milwaukee Bucks. In that game, Hinrich had seven points, three rebounds, three assists and five turnovers in 25 minutes. The Hawks won, 99-94 (full stats here).

Milwaukee Bucks' Drew Gooden (0) gets between Orlando Magic's Ryan Anderson (33) and Dwight Howard for a shot in the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, March 3, 2012, in Orlando, Fla.

• Drew Gooden (Milwaukee Bucks) had just seven points in 30 minutes against the Orlando Magic on Saturday night. Gooden hit just 2 of 7 shots from the field, collected five rebounds and committed five fouls while matched up (mostly) with Orlando center Dwight Howard, who had 28 points and 14 rebounds. Milwaukee lost, 114 to 98 (full stats here).

After the game, Gooden himself summed up the Bucks’ night:

“Dwight got the ball in the paint when he wanted to and scored. And when they got the chance outside to shoot threes, they knocked ’em down. So tonight no matter what poison we picked, it was poison.”

On Friday, Gooden put up 26 points on 21 shots in a 99-94 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. Gooden was a perfect 9-for-9 from the free-throw line and double-doubled with 10 rebounds in 37 minutes (full stats here). He also had a kind-of-rare-but-not-as-rare-as-it-used-to-be make on a three-point attempt.

• Nick Collison (Oklahoma City Thunder) missed all three of his shots and went scoreless in 25 minutes against the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday. Collison grabbed just two rebounds and blocked one shot as the Thunder lost, 97-90. Collison also turned the ball over an uncharacteristic four times (full stats here).

On Thursday, Collison made his only shot for two points, two rebounds, an assist, a steal and a block in 17 minutes against the Orlando Magic. OKC narrowly won that game, 105-102, but Collison and his fellow Thunder bigs couldn’t slow down Orlando center Dwight Howard, who had 33 points on 14-of-20 shooting (full stats here).

Phoenix Suns' Markieff Morris (11) pulls down a rebound over Los Angeles Clippers' Blake Griffin (32) during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Friday, March 2, 2012, in Phoenix. The Suns won 81-78.

• Markieff Morris (Phoenix Suns) made just one of his eight shots against the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday. He finished with three points, four rebounds, two assists and four fouls in 16 minutes as Phoenix edged out L.A., 81-78 (full stats here). And while the Suns held Clippers star Blake Griffin to 6-of-19 shooting, Griffin made 2 of 3 shots while matched-up with Keef.

Markieff didn’t fare much better against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday. The Suns rookie picked up five fouls and had just four points on 2-of-6 shooting. Even worse, he had just one rebound in 17 minutes to go along with an assist and two steals. The Suns won, though, 104-95 (full stats here).

The poor shooting has been a problem for Markieff lately. In his last five games, he’s made just 8 of 39 shots and averaged five points a game. On the season, he’s shot just 38.5 percent from the field (104-of-270) — the worst mark among rookie bigs.

The area dragging down his shooting percentages the most? The mid-range, outside of the paint and inside the arc, where he’s hit just 20 of 78 shots (25.6 percent). He fares better behind the three-point line, where he’s made 32 of 80 shots (40 percent). His best spot on the floor, though, is the restricted area under the basket, where he’s made 39 of 76 attempts (51.3 percent). And yet, this season, Markieff’s shot more from the three-point line (29.6 percent of the time) and mid-range (28.9 percent of the time) than the restricted area (28.1 percent of the time).

• Josh Selby (Memphis Grizzlies) did not play (coach’s decision) on Saturday as Memphis went without a true backup point guard against the Detroit Pistons. The Grizzlies won, 100-83, with shooting guard OJ Mayo running the team when starting point guard Mike Conley rested (game stats here).

One night before, on Friday, Selby played five minutes against the Toronto Raptors. Selby made one of two shots for two points. He also had one assist, but the Raptors outscored the Grizzlies by eight while Selby was in the game. In fact, Toronto’s backup point guard, Jerryd Bayless, scored seven points while matched up with Selby. Still, Grizzlies won in the end, 102-99 (full stats here).

Miami Heat's Mario Chalmers, left, has the ball stolen by Utah Jazz's Devin Harris during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Salt Lake City, Friday, March 2, 2012.

• Poor shooting and foul trouble were the story of the night for Mario Chalmers (Miami Heat) against the Utah Jazz on Friday. Chalmers picked up his second of four fouls midway through the first quarter and was limited to 25 minutes in the 99-98 Heat loss. He played just five seconds in the fourth quarter and made just 1 of 6 shots and 1 of 2 free throws for three points. Chalmers misfired on all four of his three-point attempts, lost the ball four times and finished with just two assists to go along with two rebounds and two steals (full stats here).

Chalmers’ Thursday performance against the Portland Trailblazers was a bit smoother. In that game, a 107-93 Heat victory, Chalmers scored 12 points with two threes and zero turnovers in 34 minutes. He added a rebound, two assists and a steal (full stats here).

Boston Celtics forward Paul Pierce (34) looks to pass as he is surrounded by New Jersey Nets guard MarShon Brooks (9), guard Deron Williams (8), guard DeShawn Stevenson (92) and forward Kris Humphries (43) during the first quarter of an NBA basketball game in Boston, Friday, March 2, 2012.

• Paul Pierce (Boston Celtics) had a cool 27 points against the New Jersey Nets on Friday. Pierce hit 10 of 14 shots overall, 3 of 4 from three and 4 of 4 from the foul line as the Celtics won, 107-94. He also chipped in four rebounds, eight assists and a block (full stats here).

Golden State Warriors shooting guard Brandon Rush (4) shoots the ball in the first half of an NBA basketball game with the Philadelphia 76ers Friday, March 2, 2012 in Philadelphia.

• Brandon Rush (Golden State Warriors) couldn’t get his shot to fall against the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday and had seven points on 2-of-9 shooting. Rush was just 1-for-6 from three-point range, but he added four rebounds, one assist and one block in 32 minutes. The Warriors lost, 105-83 (full stats here).

• Marcus Morris (Houston Rockets) did not play (coach’s decision) against the Denver Nuggets on Friday night. The Rockets lost, 117-105 (game stats here).

Other notes

• Julian Wright (NBA D-League – Austin Toros) made his D-League debut on Thursday, hitting 8 of 13 shots en route to 16 points in just 22 minutes. Wright also contributed six rebounds, an assist, a block and a put-back slam as the Toros lost, 99-94 in overtime (full stats here).

On Saturday, Wright kept up the efficiency, hitting 6 of 7 shots (including an important late three-pointer) for 13 points. But five personal fouls limited him to just 13 minutes, and the Toros lost, 110-105. Wright added four rebounds and two steals (full stats here).

• Brady Morningstar (NBA D-League – Tulsa 66ers) scored 11 points on Saturday as the 76ers won, 109-100. Morningstar had two rebounds, an assist and one three-pointer in 24 minutes (full stats here).

On Friday, Morningstar played just 12 minutes and had five points and one rebound in a 99-94 loss (full stats here).

Jayhawks in upcoming NBA games

Sunday, March 4

• noon, ABC, Paul Pierce and the Boston Celtics vs. the New York Knicks

• 2:30 p.m., ABC, Mario Chalmers and the Miami Heat vs. the Los Angeles Lakers

• 5 p.m., Brandon Rush and the Golden State Warriors vs. the Toronto Raptors

• 6 p.m., Marcus Morris and the Houston Rockets vs. the Los Angeles Clippers

• 7 p.m., Markieff Morris and the Phoenix Suns vs. the Sacramento Kings

Monday, March 5

• 6 p.m., Brandon Rush and the Golden State Warriors vs. the Washington Wizards

• 7 p.m., Drew Gooden and the Milwaukee Bucks vs. the Philadelphia 76ers

• 7 p.m., NBA TV, Nick Collison, Cole Aldrich and the Oklahoma City Thunder vs. the Dallas Mavericks

• 9 p.m., Xavier Henry and the New Orleans Hornets vs. the Portland Trailblazers