NBA: Markkanen, Cavaliers fight back to beat Nuggets in OT
Lauri Markkanen #24 of the Cleveland Cavaliers takes a three-point shot during a game against the Milwaukee Bucks at Fiserv Forum on December 06, 2021 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Stacy Revere/Getty Images/AFP
Lauri Markkanen’s 3-pointer with 28.3 seconds left in overtime was the decisive basket in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 119-116 come-from-behind victory over the Denver Nuggets on Friday.
Markkanen had a season-high 31 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, while Evan Mobley had 27 points and 11 rebounds and Darius Garland put up 25 points and 14 assists.
Another point-assist double-double for DG the PG! 🌟
25 PTS
10 AST#DGMostImproved | #LetEmKnow pic.twitter.com/5lklmULhwP— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) March 19, 2022
The Cavs closed the overtime period on a 10-2 run, capped by Mobley’s contested layup with 11.5 seconds remaining.
MVP candidate Nikola Jokic had a game-high 32 points, plus 10 rebounds and eight assists for the Nuggets, who had their franchise-record seven-game road winning streak snapped.
Aaron Gordon added 20 points and eight rebounds and guard Bones Hyland had 17 points for Denver.
The Cavs, 2-1 on this critical five-game homestand, will host Detroit on Saturday.
The Cavs took an early 16-8 lead, capped by Markkanen’s 3-pointer. Markkanen had 10 points and five rebounds to help the Cavs to a 31-29 lead after one quarter. Gordon scored 10 points for the Nuggets.
The Nuggets fashioned a 13-0 run to move out to a 39-31 advantage in the second quarter. Hyland scored 13 points as Denver opened a 63-52 lead at halftime.
The Nuggets shot 56 percent in the half and did pretty much whatever they wanted. Denver’s bench outscored Cleveland’s 29-8.
Markkenan had 18 points and eight rebounds in the half for the Cavs.
The Nuggets withstood a rally by Cleveland and held on for an 87-78 lead entering the final quarter.
Caris LeVert’s 3-pointer capped a 21-6 run to narrow Denver’s lead to 98-97 with 5:38 remaining in regulation.
Garland’s layup handed the Cavs a brief 102-100 lead with 4:20 left. Nokic followed with a layup to knot the score.
Nokic’s layup with 43 seconds left in the fourth period sent the game into overtime tied at 107.
