• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Hornets roll to win over Nuggets

Feb 1, 2015 - 7:40 AM Denver, CO (SportsNetwork.com) - Cody Zeller scored a career-high 21 points and the Charlotte Hornets rolled to a 104-86 win over the Denver Nuggets on Saturday night.

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist added 17 points and 13 rebounds and Al Jefferson and Jason Maxiell each scored 14 for the Hornets, who missed all 11 of their 3- point attempts but led by as many as 36.

"We defended and we ran," Charlotte head coach Steve Clifford said. "We had a lot of good possessions where we kept the ball moving."

Lance Stephenson contributed 13 assists off the bench in the win.

Danilo Gallinari had 15 points to lead the Nuggets, who have lost nine of their last 10.

"We're not very good right now," Denver head coach Brian Shaw said. "It's not acceptable."

Zeller's previous career high was 20 points in a 104-95 win over Boston on Jan. 5.

He was most of the way there after scoring 14 points on 7-of-8 shooting in the first quarter, when the Hornets shot better than 54 percent for a 30-15 lead going into the second.

Denver's last lead was 13-12 but it was followed by an 18-2 run to end the quarter that gave the Hornets the lead for good.

Zeller had 12 points during the flurry, including eight in a row during one stretch.

The lead reached 32 by halftime and was as high as 36 in the third quarter on a Kidd-Gilchrist free throw with 9:45 remaining.

The Nuggets only managed to get it under 20 down the stretch.

Game Notes

The Hornets have won four in a row in the series ... Charlotte will end its road trip Monday in Washington with the first of two consecutive games against the Wizards ... The Nuggets start another three-game road trip on Tuesday in Philadelphia.