(Denver-CO) If last night’s game was two sprinters motoring down the track then Denver stuck it’s chest out and won by a lean. There were 21 ties and 19 lead changes in last night’s, 102-95, victory over the Hornets in the Big Easy, but down the stretch the offensive exploits of Carmelo Anthony and headiness of Chauncey Billups were enough for the Nuggets to pull out their fifth straight win.

Before I go any further let me say that Darren Collison and Marcus Thornton are two great players. Both rookies, the Hornets have a bright future with these two in ‘Nawlins. Darren Collison is so much quicker than I expected him to be and his ability to get to the rim and finish really surprised me. Not to mention he’s a great passer as was on display last night with the first-year player out of UCLA finishing with 17 points and ten assists while playing in 45 of 48 minutes in regulation. On the other hand, Thornton was essentially the Hornets only contributor off the bench finishing with 23 of New Orleans 25 points off the bench, six of seven of its rebounds, and five of six of their assists.

And a lot of credit is due the rest of the Hornets for trading blows with the Nuggets despite their playoff chances slipping away. New Orleans did a great job in the first half taking care of the basketball and limiting the Denver Nuggets to a perimeter offense. The Hornets turned the ball over just five times in the half while Denver shot 1-8 from three, a statistic that would only worsen as the night would progress, and took a, 52-51, lead into intermission.

Things stayed tight throughout the second half before a steal by J.R. Smith with the game tied at 86 led to a Carmelo Anthony lay-up on the fast break. That turnover and fast break bucket was the momentum swing in the game that Denver needed after battling the whistle all night long (the Hornets were convicted of only one foul in the first 14 minutes of the second half compared to nine by the Nuggets) and a terrible night shooting the three (Denver was just 3-22 in all). Carmelo Anthony then finished the game making 5-7 of his final field goal attempts and both of his free-throws to score twelve of Denver’s 29 points in the fourth quarter. Anthony finished with a game-high 32 points.

Also of note, Denver’s front line of ‘Melo, Johan Petro, and Nene all finished with double-doubles in points and rebounds. Petro gave the Nuggets his best showing of the year so far, and perhaps proved he could be a viable commodity down the playoff stretch, with ten points and ten rebounds while Nene finished with 17 points for the second consecutive night and twelve boards. “Big Brazil” scored eight of the first ten points of the game for the Nuggets and six of their final 14 in the game’s final five minutes.

And who can forget about Chauncey? Smooth came up with a demoralizing steal off a lazy New Orleans inbounds pass by Emeka Okafor after Denver had just gone up by six, 94-88, with under four to play. That theft and subsequent foul by Collison put Mr. Big Shot on the free-throw line, where he’s nearly automatic, for a pair of bunnies and put the game out of reach for good. Would the Nuggets probably still won without that steal? Yes. But, that’s the kind of play that Chauncey gives you: Heady, steady, and ready at every moment of the game and often times it makes the difference between winning running away from the opposition and having to fight and claw things out where, as we know, anything can happen.

The Nuggets have now won five straight games and look to continue their current run tonight in Memphis. And after looking at the playoff picture and the Memphis Grizzlies Schedule, the Grizz are not a team to take lightly. They have won their last three games and currently are on the outside looking in, currently in ninth place, of the playoff shuffle.

Go Nuggets!

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