At 8:00 a.m. Beijing time on December 24, the NBA regular season is in full swing, and the Nuggets challenge the Hornets away. In the Nuggets' last game against the Nets, Jokic successfully broke the Nuggets' all-time rebounding record and became the team's rebounding champion. Jokic is averaging 267 points 123 rebounds 92 assists, judging from Jokic's personal presence during this period and being ejected from the court many times, Jokic doesn't seem to be so eager for regular season MVP. Jokic's goal is to lead the Nuggets to defend their title. The veteran Reggie finally earned a spot after Brown's departure and has repeatedly turned the tide to buy himself normal rotation time.
The Hornets are in a row with the likes of the Wizards and Pistons in the East, and after the heavy defeat to the Pacers last time, the Hornets have suffered a six-game losing streak. The record dropped to 7-19 and placed third from bottom in the East. Ball's injury absence did take a toll on the Hornets, although Bridges returned in time to average a team-high 196 points, plus 7 rebounds and 25 assists. However, the Hornets' overall offense and defense are in the bottom 5 of the league, especially the efficiency value on the defensive end is only 1219, ranked first from the bottom. The starting lineups of both sides in this game, the Nuggets used Jokic, Murray, Porter Jr., Pope and Gordon. The Hornets sent Bridges, Hayward, Miller, Richards, and Ismael.
At the beginning of the first quarter, the Hornets were very active on the court, with Strongward, Bridges, Richards and Miller breaking through the basket to beat the Nuggets 12-2. The Nuggets' offensive form was very sluggish, with only Murray scoring four points in the first half and Gordon breaking through. Fortunately, the Nuggets' adjustment speed was very fast, Murray hit another three-pointer from the outside, Gordon made a 2+1 basket, and Porter Jr. hit all 2 open three-pointers. In more than 2 minutes, the Nuggets played an 11-2 counterattack to overtake the score. In the final period, the Hornets hit a solid shot from the outside, and Bridges scored six points on consecutive shots to regain the lead. At the end of the first quarter, the Nuggets trailed the Hornets by two points at 25-27.
In the second quarter of the game, Nuggets Strauser hit a three-point shot from the outside, Braun broke through to make 2+1, and followed up with a three-pointer from the outside. Watson seized the gap and scored a layup to give the Nuggets back the lead. Hornets Washington suddenly erupted, scoring 13 points in a row with five free throws in a single quarter. The Nuggets relied on Jokic to score 6 points in a row under the basket, and Porter Jr. scored 5 points in a row inside and outside to withstand the pressure and did not let the situation collapse. At halftime, the Nuggets trailed the Hornets by six points, 54-60.
In the halftime statistics, Jokic had 8 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists on 4-of-7 shooting. Gordon finished with eight points on 3-of-7 shooting. Braun had eight points and four rebounds. Murray finished with nine points, two rebounds and three assists on 4-of-9 shooting. Porter Jr. 13 points. On the Hornets' side, Hayward had eight points, four rebounds and two assists on 4-of-4 shooting. Washington scored 16 points on 5-of-9 shooting. Smith had four points, two rebounds and seven assists. Bridges 14 points. Richards had 10 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists.
In the second half, the Nuggets made frequent mistakes at the beginning, but the Hornets failed to capitalize on their chances. On the contrary, he took the lead in letting the Nuggets find their crosshairs, Jokic scored a layup, Murelli scored five points in a row on a burst shot, and Gordon scored a layup. That's not all, Murray can break through and score 11 points in a row. Porter Jr. hit two three-pointers in a row to further widen the difference. It's hard to imagine that the Hornets scored two points through Bridges in the opening nearly nine minutes, and the Hornets only scored nine points in the entire third quarter. The Nuggets took advantage of the victory to chase down, and Strauser broke through and scored a layup. At the end of the third quarter, the Nuggets led the Hornets by 15 points, 84-69.
In the final quarter of the game, the Nuggets bench Reggie. Strawther hit the basket one after another, and Braun hit a solid three-pointer from the outside. The Hornets' offense improved slightly, with Smith Jr. scoring 11 points on three three-pointers in a row, and Martin made a quick stop from mid-range. The Nuggets were quickly beaten on a 15-4 run, and the Hornets closed the margin to three points. At the critical moment, Jokic broke through and scored a layup, and Porter Jr. grabbed the free throw. The time has passed, the game is over, and the Nuggets won the Hornets 102-95!While the Nuggets are on a 4-game winning streak, the Hornets are on a 7-game losing streak!
In the statistics of the whole game, Porter Jr. scored 22 points, 5 rebounds and 1 assist on 8-of-14 shooting, 1 steal and 2 blocks. Murray finished with 20 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and three steals on 8-of-19 shooting. Jokic finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists on 8-of-14 shooting. Gordon had 14 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block. Braun finished with 11 points, seven rebounds and two blocks on 3-of-7 shooting. Strausser 10 points. On the Hornets' side, Bridges had 22 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 3 blocks on 8-of-23 shooting. Richards had 12 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 3 blocks. Hayward had eight points, six rebounds and four assists. Smith had 4 points, 3 rebounds and 8 assists. Washington had 20 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 steals.
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