Charlotte Hornets Five Best Games

Mar 4, 2015; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Charlotte Hornets center Al Jefferson (25) controls the ball against Brooklyn Nets center

(11) during the third quarter at Barclays Center. The Hornets defeated the Nets 115-91. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

March 4th, 2015

Charlotte Hornets 115 Brooklyn Nets 91

This game felt like a playoff game at the time, as the Nets and Hornets were battling it out for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

At the time, the importance of this one was off-the-charts and both teams knew it. In the previous match-up, the Nets used Joe Johnson to exploit their lack of size in the back-court, and Johnson and the Nets would go on the pulverize Charlotte.

Hornets head coach Steve Clifford came out with a better gameplan in this contest, starting the bigger Marvin Williams and putting him against Johnson in the post.

Iso-Joe suddenly had to deal with a bigger, strong player and could no longer back his way into easy shots. Williams controlled Johnson, and the Hornets as a team came out of the gates bringing the intensity.

Charlotte was up by 20 points at the end of the first quarter, and the rout was on. Six different players had 10 or more points for the Hornets, led by Al Jefferson and Gerald Henderson, who each had 19.

This was the third win in a row for the Hornets, and it felt like they were solidifying their grip on the last playoff spot. In fact, they might have done just that if not for the untimely injuries to Big Al and Cody Zeller.

Next: Hornets Beat 76ers Despite Injuries