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(Sports Network) - The second-seeded New Orleans Hornets and No. 7 Dallas Mavericks continue their first-round playoff series tonight at New Orleans Arena.

In Game 1, MVP candidate Chris Paul scored 35 points and dished out 10 assists to lead the Hornets to a 104-92 victory on Saturday at New Orleans Arena. All- Star forward David West finished with 23 points and eight rebounds in the victory, while Peja Stojakovic netted 14 for New Orleans.

Reigning MVP Dirk Nowitzki collected 31 points and 10 rebounds in the loss for Dallas, while Jason Kidd ended with 11 points, nine boards and nine assists for the Mavericks, who have lost two straight and four of their last five playoff contests.

Game 3 of this series is scheduled for Friday at American Airlines Center.

Dallas has won six straight Game 2s in the postseason, while the Hornets have dropped five straight Game 2s.

This is the first time the teams have met in the playoffs. During the regular season, the clubs split four contests as both clubs won a pair of games at home.

The Southwest Division-champion Hornets are back in the postseason for the first time since the 2003-04 campaign. They fell in seven games to the Miami Heat in the first round of the 2004 playoffs.

New Orleans moved to the Western Conference for the 2004-05 campaign. and will compete in the West playoffs for the first time in franchise history.

The last time the Hornets won a playoff series was in 2002 when they defeated the Orlando Magic, 3-1 in the opening round. They lost in five games, 4-1, in the next round to the New Jersey Nets.

The Hornets have never won a best-of-seven playoff series (0-6), and are 4-5 all-time in the opening round of the postseason.

The Mavericks are in the playoffs for the eighth straight year. They fell in six games last season in the opening round to the Golden State Warriors.

Dallas was 17-24 on the road during the regular season, while the Hornets were 30-11 at home.