The Denver Nuggets knocked off the New Orleans Pelicans 105-99 Wednesday night to log their second-straight victory on the road and fourth overall.
Denver overcame a three-point halftime deficit, outscoring the Pelicans by 14 in the third to take an 11-point lead into the fourth quarter. However, the Pelicans, who were coming off a tough road win against the Houston Rockets, started the fourth quarter on an 11-2 run to pull to within a bucket on a 3-pointer by Kenrich Williams with 8:46 remaining.
The Nuggets held on, resisting the Pelicans’ charge down the stretch despite seeing their lead dwindle down to one late.
Nuggets center Nikola Jokić recorded his eighth triple double of the season and sixth in the month of January, tallying 20 points on 9-for-16 shooting, 13 rebounds and 10 assists. His back-to-back buckets with 1:17 and 42.4 seconds remaining gave his team the cushion it needed to improve to 35-15 on the season.
In the absence of Jamal Murray, who missed his third-straight game with a sprained left ankle, second-year man Monte Morris, got the starting nod at point guard for the Nuggets. And boy did the former Iowa State point guard take advantage of the opportunity. Seventh in the league in 3-point field-goal percentage heading into the game, the 6-foot-3, 175-pounder came up a point shy of tying a career-high, dropping 20 points on 8-for-12 shooting to go along with seven assists, six rebounds and two steals.
Third-year Nuggets shooting guard Malik Beasley also came just one point short of tying a career-high. Beasley scored 22 points on 9-for-14 shooting in 29 minutes while Paul Millsap added 13 points and eight rebounds.
Jrue Holiday scored 22 to lead New Orleans (23-29) followed by Williams with 21. Darius Miller (15) and Jahlil Okafor (14) also finished in double-digits in scoring in a losing effort.
Denver dished out 31 assists compared to New Orleans’ 27 and won the turnover battle 15-10. The. Nuggets outscored the Pelicans 62-42 in the paint, a category New Orleans led the league in coming into the contest.
The Nuggets host the Houston Rockets Friday at 8 p.m. MST. That game will be broadcasted on Altitude TV and streamed on AltitudeNOW.