Despite Late Loss, Hornets Take Step Forward in South Beach

More Coverage: Game Action Gallery | Head Coach James Borrego Postgame | Cody Martin Postgame

Taking down a loaded Heat squad was going to be a tall task even before the Hornets lost another rotational piece – this time, Terry Rozier – to an ankle sprain over the weekend. But the energy level and response Head Coach James Borrego saw from the rest of his players in the narrow 104-103 preseason defeat on Monday evening in Miami was night and day compared to their 30-point home loss to Memphis just four days ago.

“Fantastic game. I loved our approach,” said Borrego afterwards. “We came out, we competed. Our defense was much better tonight, our physicality was much better tonight, so we took a…