SPORTS NUGGETS BEAT KNICKS FOR 6TH STRAIGHT WIN

NUGGETS 111, KNICKS 93 Nuggets tie Golden State for first place in Western Conference

YORK» The Nuggets, in NEW their quest for the No. 1 seed, treated Friday night at Madison Square Garden like a business trip. They pounded the lowly Knicks 111-93 for their sixth win in a row, tying them with the Golden State Warriors for first place in the Western Conference with 11 games left.

Nikola Jokic was dominant with 21 points, 17 rebounds and five assists, the latest gem on his MVPcaliber résumé. His effort was part of a huge night on the glass, where the Nuggets owned a 62-45 advantage. Six starters reached double digits as the Nuggets rose to 49-22 overall and improved to an NBA-best 9-1 on the second night of back-to-back sets.

“The one thing I told our guys after is that we gotta find a way to be more consistent,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “There were times, stretches in tonight’s game where we looked like the best team in the NBA. There were other stretches where we looked like a team that was fighting even to make the playoffs.”

The Knicks, despite their lottery-bound record, cut it to seven points in the third quarter on a DeAndre Jordan alley-oop, but the Nuggets promptly responded with a run of their own to extend the lead to 20. Gary Harris was instrumental in the run and during the winning streak in general. He has hit 14 3-pointers throughout the six-game streak, including four Friday night.

“Last year we definitely struggled with (lesser teams),” said Denver forward Paul Millsap, who finished with eight points and nine rebounds. “This year we’ve done a better job of winning games we’re supposed to win, not making it tough on ourselves.”

Malone admitted that unlike last year, there was some relief in the fact that his team had already clinched a playoff spot with twoplus weeks left in the season.

“It’s a fine line of not too much relief because we still have a lot to play for,” Malone said, citing the No. 1 seed, home-court advantage for as long as possible and a possible Northwest Division title. “Feel good about it, celebrate it, but this