Nuggets hold fort in fourth to trim Pacers
INDIANAPOLIS—Nikola Jokic scored a 31-point triple-double as Denver broke clear in the fourth quarter before holding off a late rally to turn back Indiana, 114-109, on Tuesday.
The wild game saw the lead change hands 12 times—as both teams led by twin digits on separate stages—before the Nuggets, who outscored the Pacers, 39-19 in the third period, finally edged clear late.
Even then, there was still time for the Pacers to fight back, as they wiped out the Nuggets’ 13-point fourth quarter advantage to lead briefly before a late burst of scoring sealed Denver’s victory.
“The game opened slow, we didn’t have energy,” Jokic said. “The whole first half was bad, but the second half was good for us—we controlled the pace, we got the momentum, we were the aggressive ones, and we took the aggressiveness to them.
“We had a really good third quarter. We controlled the pace. We just need to do that in more of the game.”
Jokic also finished with 13 rebounds and 10 assists to lead Denver, with Jamal Murray matching his 31 points that went with eight rebounds and seven assists.
With the Pacers still missing the injured Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana’s scoring was led by Myles Turner with 22 points, while new recruit Pascal Siakam finished with 16 points.
The Pacers meanwhile had head coach Rick Carlisle ejected for questioning a no-foul call on Siakam in the third quarter.
“I got run out because I didn’t like what I was seeing out there at all. Not one bit,” Carlisle explained after the game. “I’ll leave it at that.” —AFP
