The Denver Nuggets managed to knock off the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers in dominant fashion on Wednesday night, in front of a packed Pepsi Center crowd.

From the get-go, this game was a must-win for the Nuggets. The recent surge of the Portland Trail Blazers and back to back losses for Denver severely hurt the team’s chances at cracking a spot in basketball’s postseason.

With that said, the Nuggets signature win Wednesday night help hit the reset button and ultimately could give the Nuggets the momentum they’ve lacked to round this season out with a spot in the playoffs.

“I thought this was the most important game of the season,” Nuggets shooting guard Gary Harris said. “We know the playoff race we are in…I think we have been playing with a certain type of confidence,”

The win bumps the Nuggets lead on the Blazers for the Western Conference’s final playoff spot up to two games.

As it stands, Denver has the second most difficult schedule remaining among all NBA teams. With contests littered with playoff teams ahead, the timing on this win was ideal.

“[This] time of the year couldn’t have come at a better time.” Nuggets head coach Michael Malone said.

Although the win was great, the Nuggets have business to get down to. With 11 games remaining on the schedule, Denver has no time to play around with Portland breathing down their necks. A two-game lead can vanish quicker than one could imagine. As a matter of fact, just a few short days ago, the Nuggets were up a handful of games on the Blazers for the eighth seed. Two days later and that lead was cut to just a half-game.

As I wrote earlier in the season, consistency has been Denver’s biggest Achilles’ heel. While the team has given no indication that they will suddenly turn a corner, after a win like Wednesday’s and given their current standing, it’s now or never for the Nuggets to find consistency this season. Momentum from big wins like Wednesday’s can carry over, resulting in a team surging at just the right time. If Denver wants to continue to keep the pressure on Portland and remain in the driver’s seat as the season narrows, they will need to use the “ecstatic” energy from the locker room Wednesday, as coach Malone said, to help this team kick thing into gear like everybody knows they can.

When Denver’s defense plays average and the offense is firing on all cylinders, the Nuggets can match up with anybody in the league. This season alone, Denver has managed to beat the Golden State Warriors, Boston Celtics (twice), and Cavaliers. Call it dumb luck if you want, but Denver managed to defeat all three of those teams by double-digit margins each time.

Since the All-Star break, the Nuggets overall have been on a tirade offensively, ranking first among all teams in field goal percentage and assists per game. Denver also ranks top-5 in points per game, three-point percentage, and rebounds.

To put it simply, Denver is a good team when they choose to be. Sure injuries and other circumstances have made things a bit more difficult for the Nuggets, but the coaches and players have refused to use that as an excuse.

Bottom line is this; the Nuggets are in control of their own destiny. They have constantly shown over the course of the season that they may be down at times but not out. The resilience is proven, and while their record of 34-37 is far from ideal, it is good enough to put them in a position to nab a spot in the playoffs for the first time in three seasons.

Wednesday’s game was easily Denver’s biggest and most critical win of the year. With the odds pointed against them, the Nuggets showed up and won the fight, something they will have to do continuously to earn a spot in the big dance.

“We are trying to make this playoff push and make a name for ourselves again,” forward Kenneth Faried said on the state of the Nuggets.