In an entertaining home opener in front of a crowd of 1400, the Nuggets showed plenty of promise but lacked the execution required to stop the defending champion.
They had some periods of defensive ineptness, particularly at the end of the first quarter and the beginning of the second.
They also shot poorly from long range and missed a number of open looks at the basket.
But this was no walkover, nor was it some sort of dispiriting performance from a franchise trying desperately hard to be taken seriously.
The Nuggets played with intensity, as you would expect from any side quarterbacked by the unnaturally competitive Mark Dickel.
In patches, their defence was marvellous, and it should get better as the season progresses.
The Nuggets out-rebounded the Saints 37 to 32. And there were signs that, in Antoine Tisby and newcomer Akeem Wright, the Nuggets have an American pair as good as most in the league.
It was simply that, on this night, the class of Saints point guard Jason Crowe, new import Anthony Gurley, veteran Tall Black Casey Frank and sharpshooter Troy McLean shone through.
The Saints also found their touch from outside, making 17 of 41 shots from beyond the arc, compared with the Nuggets' effort of three from 17.
Gurley drained four treys in his 27 points, Frank had 23 points and was virtually unstoppable inside, and Crowe was a rebound off a triple double with 22 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds.
The classy Tisby was his usual productive self for the Nuggets with 28 points and 13 boards, while Wright was a little streaky but still finished with 25 and 10.
Dickel, the most popular man in the building, had 23 points and seven assists in his return to Dunedin.
Steve Robinson's ugly but effective shot gained him seven points, but Riki Buckrell's hand was cold in a 2-of-11 shooting performance.
For Nuggets coach Alf Arlidge, a gallant defeat was simply not good enough.
"There are no excuses. We've got to get better," he said.
"We obviously have to work on our defence. The Saints are a great team but we gave them way too many open looks.
"Then they hit some big threes in the final quarter that really hurt us."
Arlidge was delighted with the performance of Dickel, the homegrown hero in his comeback season.
"Akeem also really came alive in the second half. Tis was just Tis. And a guy like Steve Robinson, who hadn't played in two years, came in and gave us some good minutes."
The Saints had a 10-point lead after the first quarter and quickly stretched that to 20.
But the Nuggets showed pleasing guts and gumption to cut the lead back to nine at the half.
The Saints kept hitting the big shots and rebuilt a handy lead, before a one-handed Wright jam and an Ethan Carruthers bomb on the buzzer made it 83-70 heading into the final quarter.
That was more or less where the margin stayed. The Nuggets showed plenty of fight but the Saints were able to stay clear.
The Nuggets' next game is a much-anticipated home derby against the Southland Sharks in eight days.
In other games, Taranaki beat Southland 94-77, and Nelson beat Harbour 90-83.
The scores
Wellington Saints 110
Anthony Gurley 27, Casey Frank 23, Jason Crowe 22
Otago Nuggets 94
Antoine Tisby 28, Akeem Wright 25, Mark Dickel 23
First quarter, 31-21.
Halftime, 53-44.
Third quarter, 83-70.
