NBA: Nikola Jokic, Nuggets end Raptors’ streak
Aaron Gordon #50 and Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets hug after their NBA game victory against the Toronto Raptors at Scotiabank Arena on February 12, 2022 in Toronto, Canada. Cole Burston/Getty Images/AFP
Nikola Jokic had 28 points, 15 rebounds and a game-saving block on OG Anunoby in the final second, and the visiting Denver Nuggets beat the Toronto Raptors 110-109 on Saturday night.
Jeff Green scored 19 points, Aaron Gordon had 13, Bones Hyland finished with 11 and Will Barton added 10 for Denver.
Article continues after this advertisementPascal Siakim scored a game-high 35 points and added 10 rebounds, Fred VanVleet had 25 points, Scottie Barnes scored 17 and Gary Trent Jr. 11 for the Raptors, who had their eight-game winning streak snapped.
Toronto led by 86-83 after the first three quarters and pushed it to 94-86 on Siakim’s 3-pointer with 9:33 left. Bryn Forbes scored five straight points, and after Dalano Banton split a pair of free throws, DeMarcus Cousins and Austin Rivers made layups to tie it at 95 and force a Raptors timeout with 7:29 left.
Khem Birch missed a 14-footer out of the timeout, and Facu Campazzo made a 3-pointer to put Denver ahead 98-95. Toronto went ahead again on consecutive layups, but the Nuggets regained the lead on a three-point play by Jokic.
Article continues after this advertisementBarnes tied it with a jumper, but Hyland’s 3-pointer and Jokic’s tip-in gave Denver a 108-103 lead with 1:34 left. The Raptors got within two on a free throw by VanVleet, but Barton’s fadeaway with 28.8 seconds left made it 110-106.
VanVleet made a 3-pointer and Jokic missed a pair of free throws with 12.2 seconds left. VanVleet missed a 3-pointer, Anunoby got the rebound but Jokic blocked his layup with 0.3 seconds left and Denver held on.
FROM OUT OF NOWHERE.
NOT TODAY, BUDDY!!!!! pic.twitter.com/SIxr0snz0t
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) February 13, 2022
Both teams had eight-point leads in the first half, and Toronto pulled ahead 57-56 at intermission.
The Raptors went ahead by five early in the third and increased it 78-70 on a running 3-pointer by VanVleet with 4:41 left, but the Nuggets responded.
Green started a rally with a 3-pointer, Gordon’s three-point play cut the deficit to one and Green’s dunk gave Denver a 78-77 lead. The teams traded leads before VanVleet’s 3-pointer gave Toronto an 86-83 lead entering the fourth quarter.
