Ty Lawson had 23 points and 10 assists, and Raymond Felton added 22 points and 12 assists as the Denver Nuggets point guards ran wild in their 114-103 victory over the host New Orleans Hornets on Monday.

Wilson Chandler scored 21 points and J.R. Smith chipped in 18 for the Nuggets (40-27), who have won three straight and six of seven to move two games ahead of the Hornets (39-30) for the No. 5 spot in the Western Conference.

Denver closed the second quarter on a 12-5 spurt highlighted by 10 straight points from Lawson to go into the break with a 58-45 edge.

The Nuggets knocked down seven 3-pointers in the third quarter and extending the lead to as many as 23 points, 91-68, with less than a minute left in the period.

Denver finished 17 of 29 from 3-point range, and shot 53 percent from the field.

Chris Paul was the lone bright spot for New Orleans with with 27 points, 10 assists, seven steals and five rebounds.