The Denver Nuggets (8-4) lose to the Boston Celtics (9-3) 131-112. Both teams came into play tonight on 4-game winning streaks, but the Nuggets streak sadly came to an end. Bones Hyland was a late scratch for tonight and his presence on the bench was sorely missed. Denver had no defensive answer for Boston at times, allowed several runs and could not keep up with the Celtics offensively in the first half. Without Nikola Jokić, KCP and Bruce Brown helped put the Nuggets back in play in the 3rd quarter but ultimately failed in the end.
Jayson Tatum was the game’s top scorer with 34 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Jaylen Brown added 25 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists of his own while shooting 10-15. Denver was led by Nikola Jokić, who finished with 29 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists. Denver had 3 players who finished with 15+ points as well as one with 14 points. Boston shot 55% versus Denver’s 45% and 43% to the Nuggets 41% of three.
First quarter:
The Celtics win tip-off and hit layups on back-to-back possessions followed by a lop on Aaron Gordon. The Celtics offense came out firing, starting the game 6-7 and scoring 7 straight points to force an early Nuggets timeout. Nikola Jokić stops the run with a three and a layup on the next possession. The Nuggets struggle with shooting to start the game while Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum have a combined 20 points midway through the first game. The Celtics are on a 9-0 run and moving up to 12 while the Nuggets only had 12 points at that point. The Nuggets are struggling to protect the Celtics’ 5-out lineup, allowing Boston to shoot 64% and Denver shooting just 38% as the deficit grows to 11.
The bench plus MPJ finish the 1st quarter and start warming up, scoring on 4 straight possessions. Denver also chained some defensive stops and ended the quarter up 47% and Boston up 61%. Nuggets are down 8.25-33 after the first.
Second quarter:
The Nuggets open the 2nd with an And-1 from Bruce Brown, reducing the lead to 7. Jayson Tatum has 12 points early, the Nuggets have no answer for him. Denver allows 5 offensive rebounds on a single possession and Malone requests a timeout. This is sure to be a seasonal low light. Jamal Murray comes on to give Denver a more offensive advantage, but it’s unsuccessful, the Celtics’ lead grows to 15. The Nuggets were passed 20-9 midway through the second game. The Nuggets defense fought on points and allowed Boston 4 three-pointers. Denver goes on a 12-2 run after being up 19 behind. The Celtics stay behind 2 Al Horford three-pointers and go into halftime leading the Denver Nuggets 66-57 at halftime.
Third quarter:
Nikola Jokić comes out of halftime and scores 5 points for the Nuggets and also pulls off a charge. Tatum scores with back-to-back possession plays and Jaylen Brown maintains his perfect night of shooting, shooting 8-8 with 8 minutes left in the 3rd quarter. Jokić leaves the game earlier than expected with 4 fouls. Denver has failed to bring the deficit below 7 since the first quarter. But after a 23-12 run, the nuggets close to 2. KCP is hitting three straight threes and Denver is now shooting 5/6 of 3 compared to Boston’s 2/6 of 3 in the quarter.
Boston adjusts a zone defense and increases their lead back to 6 to close the quarter. Denver reduced the deficit to 1 point without Nikola Jokić but ultimately trailed 97-91 to start the 4th quarter.
Fourth quarter:
Jokić comes back into play to start the 4th quarter, he creates two shots in a row for MPJ and Jeff Green but both miss. MPJ denies a corner three from Tatum, fouling him in the process for a flagrant foul. On Denver’s next possession, Marcus Smart makes a charge against Nikola Jokic, but the Nuggets challenge the call and it was reversed. With the deficit down to one point, the Celtics are on a 23-8 run. Horford and Tatum combined scored 16 of the 16 Celtic points in 4th place. The Nuggets only scored on free throws from the 8 minute 44 second mark to the 5 minute 16 second mark. The Nuggets starters with Bruce Brown in place of MPJ go into the game with 11 points with 4 minutes to go. KCP lands on the floor while fighting Smart for a rebound and receives a technical foul for arguing his case after the fact. Boston goes on a 7-0 run with 2 minutes in the quarter and Denver takes their starters out of the game.
Snack:
That game wasn’t the result Denver was hoping for, but it wasn’t hard to accept by any means. Boston just played better all game. Denver sometimes made a few runs, but the Celtics always had that one under control. The Nuggets never gave up and don’t have to worry about losing this one. Boston are a very physical team and are number one in the NBA in Ortg, beating them at home is no easy feat.
What’s next?
The Denver Nuggets take on the Chicago Bulls on Sunday, November 13. The game takes place in Chicago at 6:00 am MST and will be the last of the Nuggets’ current road trips.