CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Monday night, the Charlotte Hornets dropped to 1-13 on the season when playing on no rest as they fell to the Denver Nuggets 113-109.
It was a two man battle out of the gates as Aaron Gordon and Miles Bridges each scored the first six points of the game for their respective teams. Bridges cooled off, meanwhile, Gordon continued to be a problem notching 17 points in the first quarter on 7/11 shooting from the field. He also made some plays on the defensive end and dished out a few assists as well.
Nikola Jokic figured to be a mismatch for the Hornets coming into the night, but was fairly quiet, at least in terms of scoring with just six points at the half. James Borrego did a great job of rotating Mason Plumlee, Montrezl Harrell, P.J. Washington, and Jalen McDaniels on Denver's bigs and throwing a mixture of different coverages at them.
Harrell in particular was a shot in the arm off the bench converting all three field goals, snatching five boards, and drawing a pair of fouls. Two of his first nine came on a powerful dunk that nearly brought the stanchion down.
The score at halftime reflected how even the first two quarters were as Charlotte led 57-56.
Jokic finally settled in and led the charge during a 13-0 run to give the Nuggets an 80-71 lead. Charlotte gave up numerous open looks in the paint and couldn't buy a bucket on the other end. At the end of the run, Montrezl Harrell and Aaron Gordon had a heated exchange which resulted in Harrell being ejected from the game. Moments later, LaMelo Ball ended a near four-minute scoring drought with a corner three. The altercation gave the Hornets a jolt for a few possessions, but Denver still clung on to a 93-84 lead heading into the fourth.
The Nuggets lead extended to eleven but an 8-0 Hornets run brought it back to a one-possession game, 102-99. The Hornets put together a string of stops, but came up empty-handed on four straight trips up the floor, keeping the deficit at three. P.J. Washington was charged with a push in the back on Monte Morris while attacking the basket and after a coach's challenge, the call was confirmed. Morris hit both free throws, but Terry Rozier hit a big three to keep things alive with 32 seconds left. The Hornets got the stop they needed but failed to pull down the defensive rebound and had to foul Nikola Jokic who put the game away at the free throw line.
BOX SCORE
DEN: 32-24-37-20-113
CHA: 30-27-27-25-109
TEAM STATS (ACCUMULATIVE)
1st
DEN: 11/23 FG | 3/8 3FG | 14 REB | 16 PIP | 5 TOs
CHA: 11/22 FG | 3/11 3FG | 10 REB | 12 PIP | 6 TOs
2nd
DEN: 21/43 FG | 5/15 3FG | 24 REB | 30 PIP | 10 TOs
CHA: 22/46 FG | 5/20 3FG | 22 REB | 30 PIP | 10 TOs
3rd
DEN: 36/69 FG | 11/26 3FG | 39 REB | 48 PIP | 13 TOs
CHA: 34/71 FG | 8/30 3FG | 29 REB | 48 PIP | 12 TOs
4th
DEN: 40/86 FG | 12/33 3FG | 51 REB | 54 PIP | 16 TOs
CHA: 44/93 FG | 13/42 3FG | 40 REB | 58 PIP | 14 TOs
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