Paul and West teamed up to score 18 of the Hornets' final 25 points as the Hornets picked up a crucial win for their playoff hopes.

New Orleans finished the game on a 13-3 run, punctuated by Desmond Mason's steal and dunk in the final minute. Hornets center Tyson Chandler threw his hands in the air in celebration, and a sellout crowd came to its feet and twirled white rally towels as the clock ticked down.

Tracy McGrady scored 31 points to lead Houston, which had a five-game winning streak snapped. Yao Ming added 16 points, Luther Head scored 15 off the bench and Rafer Alston had 12. [Sina] Click here for more photos of the game

It was New Orleans' first win against a Western Conference playoff team since Feb. 7 against Denver and moved the Hornets within 1 1/2 games of the idle Los Angeles Clippers for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West.

Following a six-game losing streak, the Hornets have won four of their past six games.

Tracy McGrady scored 31 points to lead Houston, which had a five-game winning streak snapped. Yao Ming added 16 points, Luther Head scored 15 off the bench and Rafer Alston had 12.

Mason scored 19 points and Chandler had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Hornets. Paul's four 3-pointers were the most of his career.

New Orleans rallied from 12 points down in the second half, and Paul and West then protected the Hornets' lead again and again down the stretch.

After Yao's two free throws to cut Houston's deficit to one, Paul hit his fourth 3-pointer of the game and then added a right-handed runner in the lane to stretch the lead to 88-82.

Houston scored the next five points to get within one again, and West's putback kept the Hornets ahead. Paul then answered McGrady's driving layup with a three-point play to make it 93-89.

McGrady followed with another driving layup, but Chandler put back Mason's miss on the Hornets' next possession for a 99-94 edge, and that started the game-ending run.

Paul hit a fadeaway jumper over Alston, and Rasual Butler added a 3-pointer from the right corner before Mason's dunk.

Playing in front of a sellout crowd for the third straight home game -- two in Oklahoma City and one in New Orleans -- the Hornets used a 21-7 run to eliminate a 12-point deficit and take their first lead on Paul's right-handed runner in the lane that made it 66-64 with 3:03 left in the third quarter.

Paul's 3-pointer with 2.5 seconds left in the period gave New Orleans a 75-73 lead, and the Hornets added the first four points of the fourth quarter to finish off a 9-0 run. They wouldn't trail again.

A year after finishing last in the Southwest Division, Houston had a chance to clinch a playoff berth with a win against New Orleans combined with a Golden State loss later in the night against the Lakers.

But New Orleans, one of only two teams the Rockets haven't beaten this season, kept that from happening.

McGrady hit his first four shots and had 13 points as the Rockets opened a 26-14 first-quarter lead. Houston's lead reached 13 before the Hornets got within 42-35 on Jannero Pargo's 3-pointer. Head restored Houston's lead with back-to-back 3s.

New Orleans cut the deficit to 52-44 on West's three-point play in the final minute before the half.