CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Nuggets defenders and Hornets fans held their breath every time a shot went up for a few unusually suspenseful minutes at the end of the third quarter.
The Nuggets had briefly snapped out of holiday back-to-back mode, a malaise that overtook them in the first half and fourth quarter Saturday night. For the time being, that mindset was suitably replaced by relentless defense, aided by unwitting Charlotte shot-missing, in a staggering third quarter that cemented Denver’s fifth consecutive road win, 102-95, over the short-handed Hornets at Spectrum Center.
The Nuggets (21-10) trailed 60-54 at halftime 24 hours after playing in Brooklyn.