Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Jokic has season-high 39 points as Nuggets top Hornets 123-110
NUGGETS 123, HORNETS 110
DENVER — Nikola Jokic’s impressive numbers took a backseat to his coast-to-coast dunk. Cheered by the sellout crowd for his jam, he was also teased by his teammates. To him, the slam was a thing of beauty. “Poetry in motion,” the 7-footer said. Jokic scored a season-high 39 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, reserve Paul Millsap added 18 points and the Western Conference-leading Nuggets knocked off the Charlotte Hornets 123-110 on Saturday for their 10th straight home victory. That’s two straight games where Jokic’s now had a memorable dunk. “If I’m not tired and 100 percent sure I’m going to dunk it, I’m going to dunk,” Jokic explained. “But two points is two points — however you score.” His slam in the third quarter led to some good-natured ribbing from teammates such as Torrey Craig, who also had a high-flying dunk. “He’s feeling pretty bouncy lately,” Craig playfully said. Jokic took it all in stride. “Just because (Craig) can jump high, doesn’t mean he can dunk better,” Jokic said. Jokic turned in another impressive stat line, also adding six assists, three steals and one blocked shot. He was 16 of 29 from the floor and 4 of 5 from the line. “You try to play him straight up, he’s going to do what he wants,” Hornets guard Malik Monk said. “We just tried to play him straight up and he just exploited us on that. He’s a great player. I can’t say anything bad about him.” At 26-11, the Nuggets are off to their best NBA start in franchise history. This also marks the latest they’ve been in first place in the conference since March 16, 1977. To think, they’re not even at full strength yet. But they’re getting closer. Millsap and Gary Harris, who had 17 points off the bench, are steadily getting back up to speed after returning from injuries. The team is still missing starter Will Barton. “It’s good to be healthy. It’s good to be whole,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “Both (Millsap and Harris) showed they’re ready to take their starting jobs back. Me bringing them off the bench was trying to get them back into a game rhythm.” Kemba Walker had 20 points for the Hornets, who kicked off a six-game trip. Bismack Biyombo added a season-high 16 points. Trey Lyles and Millsap hit back-to-back 3-pointers early in the fourth quarter to give the Nuggets a 105-93 lead. Craig cemented the win with a dunk on a fast break with 1:50 remaining to extend the lead to 14. Denver scored 27 points off turnovers. “When you play hard, good things happen,” Harris said. “We have to continue to do that.”
76ERS 106, MAVERICKS 100
PHILADELPHIA — Joel Embiid had 25 points and 12 rebounds, and Ben Simmons hadded 20 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists and Philadelphia beat Dallas. Embiid hit two key free throws late for Philadelphia, which was without Jimmy Butler for the second straight game due to an upper respiratory infection. Philadelphia improved to 17-3 at home. Wesley Matthews had 18 points for Dallas. The Mavericks are 3-18 on the road.
JAZZ 110, PISTONS 105
DETROIT — Donovan Mitchell scored 24 of his 26 points in the second half, and Utah rallied from an 18-point, second-quarter deficit to beat Detroit. The Jazz nearly squandered an 11-point lead of their own in the final quarter, allowing the Pistons to cut the lead to one on a 3-pointer by Blake Griffin. Ricky Rubio made two free throws for Utah with 12.3 seconds remaining, and Detroit turned the ball over on its next possession. Griffin scored 34 points for the Pistons.
PELICANS 133, CAVALIERS 98
CLEVELAND — Jrue Holiday and Julius Randle both scored 22 points, and the New Orleans Pelicans handed the Cleveland Cavaliers their ninth straight loss with a rout. The defeat came a night after Cavaliers coach Larry Drew and his players held a lengthy meeting following a 26-point loss to Utah, but the results were no different as Cleveland went on to its most lopsided of the season. Cleveland (8-32) not only has the worst record in the league, but hasn’t played competitive basketball during most of the losing streak. The Cavaliers have lost six straight at home by a total of 141 points. Anthony Davis had 20 points and 10 rebounds. Randle had 12 rebounds and six Pelicans scored in double figures. Jordan Clarkson led Cleveland with 23 points. Rookie Collin Sexton and Jalen Jones both had 15.
SPURS 108, GRIZZLIES 88
SAN ANTONIO — Derrick White scored 19 points, LaMarcus Aldridge added 18 and the San Antonio Spurs overcame a sluggish start to beat Memphis 108-88 on Saturday night, handing the Grizzlies their fifth straight loss. San Antonio won for the 12th time in 15 games and is 4 1/2 games out of first in the Western Conference. Mike Conley had 21 points in 25 minutes for Memphis, which has dropped to 12th in the West. Jaren Jackson and Dillon Brooks, who added 15 points apiece, were the only other Grizzlies in double figures.