The Denver Nuggets played a strong game on both ends of the floor to comfortably defeat the New York Knicks 111-93. Denver was in control of the game throughout all 48 minutes, using strong 3-point shooting and defense to get the victory. The Nuggets knocked down 15 3-pointers and forced the Knicks to shoot just 37.8 percent from the field. Denver also finished the game with a 62-45 advantage on the boards.
"Our rebounding was key,” Nuggets head coach Michael Malone said. “There were a lot of misses on both ends but we were able to secure a lot of those misses and get second-chance points, which is something we do at a high level.”
The Nuggets (49-22) came out firing in the first quarter, racing out to a 17-9 lead after the first four minutes of the game. Denver attacked the basket early, as 12 of those 17 points came in the paint, which opened up opportunities from beyond the arc. The Nuggets exceled on both ends of the floor in the first, going on a 15-0 scoring run to open up a 26-9 lead midway through the quarter. Denver had the advantage in all phases of the game, as they knocked down five 3-pointers in the quarter while also dishing out nine assists and grabbing 21 rebounds. Meanwhile, New York (14-59) finished the quarter on 7-of-22 shooting from the field, including 2-of-9 from three, which allowed Denver to take a 37-18 lead into the second quarter.
The Knicks slowly battled back in the second quarter, using some strong defense to limit Denver’s high-powered offense. The Nuggets only had two assists in the second quarter, while the Knicks continued to attack the basket and score in the paint. New York finished the half with 22 points in the paint, as Denver went cold from the field, hitting just 3-of-11 from beyond the arc and scoring 19 points. After New York cut the lead down to just ten early in the quarter, back-to-back 3-pointers from Monte Morris and Malik Beasley allowed Denver to re-gain control of the game. At the half, the Nuggets led 56-42, capitalizing on their advantage from three and on the boards.
"Sustaining a lead is hard, because teams go on runs,” Malone said. “The defense overall was great tonight, but we're still looking for more consistency. "The best thing tonight was that every time we gave it up, we gathered and built the lead back up."
After Denver extended its lead back up to 17, New York went on a 10-0 run to cut the deficit to just seven. However, the Nuggets responded with 10-2 run to bring the lead back up to double-digits. The run included 3-pointers from Gary Harris and Morris, as the Nuggets continued to expand their lead from beyond the arc. Denver continued to maintain control of the game for the remainder of the quarter, closing the third on a 18-5 run to take an 82-62 lead into the final quarter. The Nuggets knocked down four 3-pointers in the quarter and expanded their lead to 51-36 on the boards.
Mitchell Robinson injected some energy into the crowd at Madison Square Garden with a couple of highlight plays early in the quarter, as New York began the fourth quarter on a 10-4 run. After the quick burst from the Knicks, the Nuggets responded with a 10-0 run of their own to open up a 24-point lead with eight minutes remaining in the game. The Nuggets withstood the Knicks’ subsequent comeback attempt, maintaining a double-digit lead for the remainder of the final quarter. Both teams brought in bench reserves to close out the final minutes of the game.
"We just wanted to come out and take care of business,” Jamal Murray said. “We wanted to focus on us and getting better. We did a great job the whole game with maintaining the lead. The ball was moving and guys were flying on defense. It was a complete team effort."
Denver was led by All-Star Nikola Jokić, who scored 21 points while grabbing 17 rebounds. Jamal Murray (18 points), Harris (14), Morris (13), Will Barton (12) and Mason Plumlee (11) were the other players in double-figures for the Nuggets.
Emmanuel Mudiay led the Knicks with 21 points. Kevin Knox (19 points) and Mitchell Robinson (16) were the other players in double-figures for New York.
The Nuggets Wrap up their road trip against the Indiana Pacers on Sunday. The game will tip at 3 p.m. MT and will air on Altitude TV.