Still deprived of Jamal Murray (knee, ankle), as for four matches, the Nuggets did not, however, deal in detail with the Riders at home: 130-101! A meeting during which Nikola Jokic was once again sparkling, offering himself a monstrous triple-double with his… 26 points, 18 rebounds and 16 assists!
If Evan Mobley (23 points) and Jarrett Allen (19 points) tried to limit the damage to Clevelandwith their baskets near the circle, it was not enough to resist the untenable Nikola Jokic, but also to Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (22 points), Michael Porter Jr. (19 points, 6 rebounds) and Reggie Jackson (19 points), perfect for Denver in support of their franchise player.
A victory synonymous with qualification for the playoffs, and which therefore incidentally revives these Nuggets, who were left with two defeats in a row at home but who can continue to dream of 1st place in the West. Abandoned by their duo Donovan Mitchell – Darius Garland (18 points at 5/20 on the shoot…), the Cavs find themselves forced to fall to 4th place in the Eastern Conference, while awaiting the result of the Knicks a little later in the evening.
TO REMEMBER
– Nikola Jokic shines. Collectively, the Nuggets were several notches above the Cavaliers (up to +29) and it is largely thanks to all the genius of Nikola Jokic, who did not stop manhandling and manipulating the opposing defense. In scoring, rebounding and creation: the Serb was right in all the good shots, and it is no coincidence that Denver dominated Cleveland in almost all areas of the game, only to break away just before the break and then make the difference after returning from the locker room. A real show of force from the “Joker” to make people forget the absence of Jamal Murray.
– Denver torpedoes Cleveland from afar. With a superb 21/33 3-pointer, to which Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Reggie Jackson and Michael Porter Jr. were obviously no strangers, the Nuggets quickly blew up the Cavaliers' defense wide. Not sufficiently focused or concerned, and therefore too often late on the coverages, the Cavs defenders let the reigning champions' shooters punish them from the start, which allowed them to gain confidence for the rest of the evening . And qualify, at the same time, their team for the playoffs!
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How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
