After an explosion of points in Game 1, Denver got the score rolling with a lineup by Paul Millsap on a slick feed by Nikola Jokic. Not to be outdone, Juwan Morgan knocked home the 3 – 0 goal just outside the reach of the goalkeeper. After a couple of Denver misses, Joe Ingles made a 3-pointer of his own to extend her lead to four before Jokic got himself into the scoring column.
Jokic “grabbed” Rudy Gobert with a few arms, but they went without shouting. Jokic capitalized on the flops with an easy setup. Gobert took care of that at the other end by making a controversial lineup. After a miss by Jamal Murray, Donovan Mitchell fired a shot from midfield into the face of Michael Porter Jr. While the Denver offense was difficult and invalid looking, Ingles made another shot to increase the lead before making a 3-point shot on the next possession.
Down 15-8, Jokic turned a 3-point shot to cut the lead to four before Mitchell got another run to fall. Out of a timeout, Jokic continued to roll with a mid-range jumper to give him 11 of the team’s 13 points. After a miss by Jordan Clarkson, Monte Morris came up with confidence for a 3-point shot that left Denver within one with 4:40 left. After a close miss by Mitchell, Jerami Grant got a wing jumper to fall before Clarkson fired a 3-point shot to regain the lead.
After missing and a time-out, Emmanual Mudiay made a 3-point shot to extend Utah’s lead to five. After a miss by Jokic, Clarkson went coast-to-coast for an easy lineup. Porter turned the ball over when he bounced it off, and Utah capitalized on the transition lineup. As a result, it completed a 10-0 run that put them through nine. Monte Morris made a couple of free throws before an excellent defensive possession forced a 24-second foul. Grant immediately capitalized with a 3-point shot from the top of the key.
After his previous turn, Porter knocked the ball out of the hands of Georgis Niang to force a turnover. Morris led the team within two with 30 seconds remaining. After forcing another miss from Clarkson, Grant had a chance to give the team the final shot before crossing it outside the box. An attempt by Ingles was missed by the buzzer, and the two teams were close with a 27-25 lead for the Jazz going into the second quarter.
From the break, Grant got a block on Niang, and Porter pushed the pace where he pulled a foul inside and tied the game to the line. Mudiay made another lineup, and, following a turnover from PJ Dozier, Niang ignored a heavy fadeaway jumper. After missing by both sides, Clarkson made a disputed 3-point shot to extend their lead to seven, but Porter immediately got the points back with one of his own.
After a few misses by Utah, Porter stood up in Niang’s face for another 3-point make that brought her within one. At the other end, Royce O’Neal found Tony Bradley for a hard line-up, and he converted the one-on-one line. Porter had one of those spurts, and he rolled hard to the edge, where he threw a big dunk down. After a Mitchell ball, Porter came back to the other end to nail a mid-range jumper that tied the game at 37.
Gobert made a couple of free throws, but Murray shot in for a finger roll. Porter got a close block of defense, and Millsap dribbled hard inside to score a foul and convert the shot. He converted the 3-point game, but Clarkson immediately made a disputed 3-pointer to tie the game up again. After a dubious foul on Jokic, Mitchell converted a difficult line-up. After a miss by Murray, Gobert came right on the court for a disputed lineup that extended the lead to four.
After a time-out, Gobert was blocked by Grant, but Murray immediately turned the ball over. As a result, Gobert was still back, which gave him an open look that he easily put home. Under 49-42, Jokic got a bowl to fall, but O’Neal made a 3-point shot of his own. Denver made shots, but they did not cut the lead. After a Utah miss, Murray made a troublesome mid-jumper. The only problem was that Clarkson made a step-back 3-point shot on the very next possession to extend the lead to seven.
Gobert went 1-of-2 on the line making it 56-48. After a miss by Jokic, O’Neal made another 3-pointer that put the lead at 11. De Gobert then brought Jokic’s new shot into the new week with the shot clock turning down. Clarkson put up a lineup with just a few seconds left. It missed, but Gobert hit it home before the clock could run out. When half was underway, the Jazz led 61-48, and the shooting was hot.
In the second half, the two sides came possession before Morgan threw a great road from the alley-open to home to extend the lead to 15. Thanks to Denver, Porter was still net torches with a big shot of 3 points. After a Utah miss, Jokic drove the ball all the way to the hole and made a shot with Gobert all around him within 10. After he was quiet in the first half, Mitchell got a 3-point shot around to fall to prolong that lead again. Jokic was grown on a rebound, but he went just 1-of-2 on his free throw.
Increased by 12, Ingles made a wide open shot of 3 points that extended the lead to 15 and forced Michael Malone to call a time-out. Jokic showed some aggression in the second half. He attacked, and it was opportunities to create for himself and others. After missing a free throw, he found Porter for another three-pointer before Mitchell matched him. Jokic missed a 3-point shot, and after giving up an offensive handball, Ingles scored a three-pointer that extended the lead to 17.
Jokic got an offensive handball round Gobert to give himself a double-double, and he converted the lineup. The only problem is Mitchell and the Jazz cake when he hit another 3-point shot. Murray made an acrobatic lineup, but Niang made a 3-point shot that stretched the lead to 19. Jamal attacked the court, where he converted a layup that converted into a 3-point game on the line.
After a large block from Grant, Denver came out in transition where he was rewarded with a 3-point shot that brought them within 13 yards. Out of a timeout, Niang made a float, but Murray kept himself rolling with a 3-point shot. Clarkson scored a foul and made both of his free throws, and Denver could not equalize at the other end. Mitchell found O’Neal in the corner where he made his third 3-point shot of the game. Jokic went 1-of-2 at the free throw line, but they were still under 16 through. Clarkson then extended that to 18.
Everyone cooked as they wore white sweaters. Mitchell made another 3-pointer that took the lead until 21, and they just couldn’t be stopped. Mitchell rode through Murray to the court, where he made the lineup through a foul before converting the 3-point play on the line. Clarkson went to the free throw line after being fouled, and he took the lead up to 24. After a rare Utah miss, Denver got a makeover of 3 points from Morris, but they were still 21 down.
With just over 1 hour left, Mitchell got Plumlee in the air on a 3-point attempt and pulled off the foul. After making all three free throws, Plumlee made a shot on the buzzer at the other end. Immediately, Mitchell made a deep shot with 3 points extending the lead to 25. Denver could not respond, and Mitchell missed a shot to finish the quarter. It looked less than grim for Denver who went 104-79 in the fourth quarter.
To begin the fourth quarter, both sides earned misses prior to a make by Ingles at the rim. At the other end, Jokic was buried at the cup, and he went to the line where he went 2-of-2. Clarkson took a ball from the corner to court, where he hit it home. After a Murray cover, Ingles missed a transition shot, but Gobert had the easy set-up of the putback. Yesterday, 31, Jokic worked from the inside to try to do something in the final 10 minutes of the game.
He drew a foul and made both of his foul shots. After Gobert stepped under the court, they let him undress to Clarkson, who advised for another easy setup. Porter did not stop his play, however. He made a disputed 3-point shot before completing Gobert’s shot from behind. He then took his coast-to-coast administration to put it in and force a 26-hour timeout in Utah.
Out of the timeout, Mitchell made a 3-point shot that felt just like another dagger to Denver. Jokic and Porter made a couple of 2-point shots, but they were still 27 down before an offensive foul by Mitchell came on. Due to an offensive rebound from Dozier he got a shot to fall, but it was still a brutal task to come back. Gobert went 1-of-2 from the line, and the Nuggets began to empty their bench with something left over 6 hours left. Despite missing a lay-up, Porter still made a 3-point shot to give him 28 nights.
After a timeout, Gobert got another lineup to fall, but this was all for show with the lineup that Denver had on the floor. Dozier went 1-of-2 on the line, and Utah was finally clearing their reserves. Bol Bol got a few minutes late in the game, and everyone ran out the clock. Troy Daniels dropped a 3-point shot, and Bol got a couple of free throws to fall. The final score would end at 124-105.
On the defensive end, Denver flat out needs to get better. They allowed far too many wide open looks from anywhere on the floor. Utah is good enough to pay them if you give them the chance, and they showed that last night with a mark that would have been 50 percent from 3-point range if it were not for some late scoring shots.
Stat Lieders
Points: Michael Porter Jr. & Nikola Jokic – 28
Assists: Jokic – 6
Rebounds: Jokic – 11
Player of the Game: Michael Porter Jr. – 28 points, 6 rebounds, 1 block, 10-of-17 & 6-of-9 3-point range
