Denver Nuggets big man Nikola Jokic on Tuesday showed his cool down the stretch after losing it earlier in their 123-116 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Jokic scored 13 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter as the Nuggets scrambled late for their 10th straight win over the Timberwolves.
He shook off two second-quarter technical fouls — one for hanging on the rim and another for jawing at an official — to lead the Nuggets to the comeback victory.
Photo: AFP
He also had 15 rebounds.
“That’s part of basketball,” Jokic said of the calls. “You just forget it.”
Teammate Will Barton had pregame advice for Jokic.
“I tell him before every game: ‘Just go out there and win MVP. You could be the best player in the world if you want to,’” said Barton, who scored 20 points. “When he’s aggressive, it’s over with.”
JaMychal Green had 17 points off the bench for the Nuggets, who squandered an 18-point lead in the first half and fell behind by eight in the third quarter.
They went on a 15-0 run in the fourth to take control.
Denver held Minnesota scoreless for more than five minutes during the decisive stretch.
BULLS, TRAIL BLAZERS
AP, PORTLAND, Oregon
Zach LaVine was blunt: The Chicago team of the recent past would not have come back to beat the Trail Blazers like they did on Tuesday.
The short-handed Bulls rebounded from a 20-point first-half deficit to down Portland 111-108.
Coby White had 21 points and a career-high 10 rebounds, while Otto Porter Jr added 19 points and 13 rebounds.
The Bulls had seven players in double figures.
“We didn’t stop playing,” said LaVine, who finished with 18 points and nine assists.
“After the first quarter, they came out hitting a lot of tough shots. It’s not like we were playing bad, it just happens in a game. We got to a timeout and we just said we’re going to keep playing regardless, and we got back into it,” he said.
Asked if it was a game that last season’s Bulls would have won, LaVine emphatically said: “No.”
CLIPPERS, SPURS
AP, LOS ANGELES
Patty Mills on Tuesday hit a career-high eight three-pointers and scored 27 points off the bench as the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Los Angeles Clippers 116-113 to snap a four-game skid.
Dejounte Murray added 21 points, Rudy Gay had 16 points, LaMarcus Aldridge 14 points and Keldon Johnson a career-high 11 rebounds for the Spurs.
They led by 24 in the first quarter and withstood an onslaught by Kawhi Leonard in the third before nearly blowing their lead in the fourth.
Leonard scored a game-high 30 points and had 10 assists. He had 11 points in the third quarter, when Patrick Beverley made three three-pointers, and the Clippers closed within one.
Nicolas Batum had 21 points and nine rebounds, while Beverley finished with 20 points.
GRIZZLIES, LAKERS
AP, MEMPHIS, Tennessee
Anthony Davis and LeBron James each scored 26 points on Tuesday, rallying the Los Angeles Lakers to a 94-92 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.
James added 11 rebounds and seven assists, while Dennis Schroder finished with 12 points for Los Angeles.
Jonas Valanciunas, Dillon Brooks and Gorgui Dieng led Memphis with 13 points apiece, and Brandon Clarke added 12 points. Valanciunas finished with 11 rebounds.
On a poor shooting night for both teams, the Lakers depended on James and Davis down the stretch.
Los Angeles trailed 79-77 with five minutes left when the two big men combined for a 9-2 run for an 86-81 lead.
The final basket came on a dunk by Davis on an assist from James.
James and Davis combined for a run of 15 straight points late in the fourth to take the lead to 92-83 with 31.1 seconds left.
Memphis put together some late baskets to make it close, but could not overtake the Lakers, who won their fourth straight game.
The Los Angeles’ defense held the Grizzlies to 43.5 percent shooting in the first half, but the Lakers offense shot only 41.3 percent.
Memphis built a 10-point lead late in the second and held a 49-45 lead at the break.
NETS, JAZZ
AFP
In Brooklyn, Kyrie Irving carried the load for the Nets in the absences of Kevin Durant, scoring 29 points on 12-of-19 shooting in a 130-96 romp over the Utah Jazz.
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